Past is Prologue
by Knowledgeseeker66
Summary: Everyone has a past. The Kannagi siblings, Azumi and Yu, are no exceptions to this rule. They along with their family and fellow survivors have survived and endured in a world overrun by the creatures known as Aragami. The past has shaped them into who they are, and it is up to them to decide their futures.
1. Just Another Day

**Author Notes** : I would like to welcome you all to the pilot chapter of my new story. This is the first new story I've published in two years, and this has been a story that I've been considering to write for a while. I decided to publish this story today in honor of the localization for God Eater Resurrection in the West. I would like to think that similar to how the localizations for Tales of the Abyss 3DS and Tales of Graces in 2012 was a new spark of life for the Tales Series in the West that God Eater Resurrection and God Eater 2 Rage Burst's localizations would mark a new beginning for the God Eater franchise.

While I've been aware of the God Eater franchise for a while, I never invested time in it due to not having a PSP. Not to mention, when it appeared the series would not receive more localizations, it killed the interest I did have for it. However, I did watch the anime, and the beautiful animation did rejuvenate my interest, and I have read some of the related God Eater manga. I would definitely want that manga to be localized, and I'd be interested in reading the light novels because I'm all for expanding upon various characters. Needless to say, I was excited that God Eater and God Eater 2 would receive localizations for the PS4, and I will be supporting the series.

After watching the anime and reading the manga, I can definitely see why people would be disappointed about Yu not being the main character of it since he is the canonical protagonist of the first game. However, it is possible having Lenka as the protagonist was meant to establish the anime and game of being two different continuities rather than the anime being a faithful adaptation. I decided that Yu would be a major character of this story while leaving the option of Lenka appearing in this story later on being a valid option. However, whether or not I will do that is another matter entirely.

In addition to the anime, manga, and video game localizations catching my interest, reading certain fanfiction of God Eater inspired me to write my own story as well. It is a shame that there aren't more God Eater stories, but I can understand why due to how the series wasn't receiving localizations. Hopefully, between the anime and the recent localization, we will see an increase in God Eater stories in the near future. There is a great deal of potential for fanfiction, and I can only hope we will see that potential be reached.

As a side note, the names in this story will be done in Japanese order for the Japanese names. For example, while it would be Yu Kannagi in the West, it would be Kannagi Yu due to how Japan has family names come before personal names. However, I think if there are any characters with Western names, I might keep the name order the same.

Depending on the reception of this story, I may produce more chapters of it in the future. This first chapter has been a lot of fun. I was able to produce a rough draft within three days due to being highly motivated. Additionally, I have been making some plans to produce more along with chapters for my other stories. This is more than a plot bunny. I can feel it. In the meantime, I hope you will enjoy the first chapter and leave a review because I greatly appreciate written feedback.

/

Past is Prologue

Story Arc One – Surviving in the Wild – Part I

Chapter One – Just Another Day

/

A world without hope

Without hope there is no life

Hope needs to survive

/

 **Location: Japan**

 **Date: June 28, 2068 – Early Afternoon**

'What's past is prologue.' It was a wise saying written by a man long ago whose name was lost to history after the world's destruction. Regardless of the circumstances, it is a saying that remains true. The actions that take place in the past are what dictate the state of the present regardless of whether or not it was within a person's control to affect it. What became of this world was the case of the latter.

The world had become a decaying, desolate place. A majority of the world had become a barren wasteland with little to no nature to reclaim the world. The cities did not fare any better. The buildings that remained standing could be seen crumbling to dust. If this kept up, it was likely that one day there would be no buildings left and only rubble on the ground. In the outside world, besides the crumbling buildings and the occasional rusting piece of technology that worked, the only proof that human society truly existed at all were the small number of humans who were still alive to remember it which was dwindling by the day.

As the older generation could attest, the world did not always look like this. A long time ago or rather a lifetime ago, this desolate world used to be filled with life and beauty. Even the places that were already wastelands did not look as bleak as this world had become. Most importantly, humanity was on top of the food chain. However, when the Aragami came into existence, that all changed.

The Aragami were strange creatures that suddenly came into existence seemingly out of nowhere. They came in numerous shapes and sizes, but the most common Aragami was known as the 'Ogretail' which was considered one of the smaller ones, but it was still larger than a human by far. This particular Aragami had three appendages, two legs and a tail, but it did not make it any less deadly. Some Aragami had similar characteristics while others were completely different. Unfortunately, one thing they had in common was a desire for human flesh.

At this point, it was difficult to remember when exactly the Aragami came into existence. People had been attempting to survive these monsters for so long, it seemed as if they always existed. The number of people who lived in a world before they existed dwindled every day, so there were fewer witnesses. However, most people agree that it was around 2052 or 2053 that the first Aragami came into existence. Due to a lack of written records, it was difficult to be more specific than that or even know how or why they came into existence in the first place.

When the Aragami came into existence, it became a worldwide Armageddon. They devoured any and every one in their path. Their taste for human flesh could not be saturated. They may have been animals wishing to satisfy their hunger obeying the law 'survival of the fittest,' but most humans would only see them as monsters regardless of what logic was used.

Humanity attempted to fight back against the monsters, but human weapons proved to be ineffective. The best they could do was annoy, distract, or escape the monsters. Nothing more. Nothing less. Apparently, experiments discovered that only weapons made of the Aragami's cells had a chance of harming them. These weapons were known as 'God Arcs,' and the ones capable of wielding them were known as 'God Eaters.'

Despite how some people may feel that such a name was blasphemous, God Eater was a befitting name. Even with the weapons on hand, it was still a battle between David and Goliath. Because these creatures could not be harmed by normal human weapons, it was not unheard of for people to refer to these creatures as living gods hence why their name translates to 'violent god.' It was only fitting that the ones to wield weapons that could destroy them be known as 'God Eaters.'

Unfortunately, not everyone was capable of becoming a God Eater. Many people had to survive on their own. In this world, scavenging was not just an activity. It was a way of life. A means of survival. The chances of finding anything intact was slim to none, but finding anything that could be used as material to forge into something else could be the difference between someone living or dying down the road.

/

A pair of scavengers were quietly moving through the remnants of the city. As the two scavengers made their way through the decaying city's ruins, they both wore half masks to cover the lower half of their faces and googles to protect themselves from the harsh winds as well as any other elements that were produced by this wasteland of a planet. The two also made sure to wear gloves and thick hiking boots while they explored the area.

The scavengers were a brother-sister team, Kannagi Azumi and Kannagi Yu, who were scouting ahead for their group and hoped to find additional supplies to bring back. Both of them remained vigilante with each step they took. For all they knew, one noise could be enough to attract the attention of a nearby enemy that could be lurking around the corner. They kept their eyes open, and they did their best to cover the other's blind spots. However, like most things, despite their best efforts nothing was foolproof.

Azumi was twenty-two years old and was in charge of their little expedition as she had always been. Despite her young age, she had the appearance of a battle hardened warrior. She had a small diagonal scar that cut through her left eyebrow that barely missed her eye. If it had been an inch lower, her eye would have been torn from its socket. She had another scar that moved straight down her right cheek that was exceedingly wide and jagged. It looked as if someone created a fault line on her face. She did not care for her scars. Beauty was not on her priority list. Staying alive was.

In addition to her scars, she had short brown hair that would make someone seeing her from the back mistake her for a boy along with matching dark brown eyes. She was also far more muscular than most girls would be. Azumi was equipped with one handgun and a couple of knives. Both knives were placed on her left and right thighs while her gun holster was on her belt. Being the child of a former police officer afforded certain advantages, especially in this desolate world. She also made sure to always wear her gloves on her expeditions.

Yu, Azumi's her younger brother, was thirteen. He shared the same brown hair and eyes of his sister. Aside from a couple of small scrapes, he was relatively unscathed by comparison. Yu was less well equipped, but he did carry his own knife and his sister had been teaching him how to survive by utilizing what was around him to his advantage.

As they moved through the areas, Azumi's hand was never far from her gun or knives. Guns and knives may not be useful against those monsters, but that's not what they were for. Despite the apocalyptical state of the world or possibly because of it, there were more problems they had to worry about besides the Aragami. It was not a pleasant thought, but both Azumi and Yu knew that was the reality of the world they lived in now and accepted it long ago. Unfortunately, for all they knew, this would be the reality they would live in for the rest of their days.

The world before was a world that Azumi could barely remember, and it was a world that Yu had never known. However, they knew enough about it from their family and friends to know that the world was not always like that. 'What's past is prologue' were words that Azumi and Yu lived by. Their pasts made them who they were, and they would do what they could to affect their present and stay alive.

/

Azumi and Yu's group with was comprised of their mother, father, and several other families. They had been traveling together for some time, and their numbers grew over the first few years following the apocalypse, and they grew to know each well with their father as the leader. Various members of the group took on different roles, such as providing medical attention, lookout duty, as well as scouting and scavenging. Scouting and scavenging was usually what Azumi and Yu were entrusted with out of 'necessity.'

Over the course of their travels, they saw for themselves that there were still several areas in the world that had some plant life. There were areas that happened to be far away from human cities and settlements. As a result, they were fortunate enough not to share the same fate. Unfortunately, they were few and far between. The rest of the world was wasteland and desolate cities. In the end, it most likely wouldn't matter. Aragami would eventually show up in areas like that, and they would be its destruction. That was the current state of this world.

There was no safe haven once the Aragami set their sights on it. That's why unless something could be done about the Aragami, people were better off being nomads rather than creating a settlement. At the very least, a person who was moving would be readily able to run for their lives when the time came. Fenrir was one of the few exceptions to this rule.

Azumi and Yu's group were one of many human groups that attempted to migrate towards these God Eater bases in hopes they may be able to seek refuge and see some semblance of the former human world. However, it had been rumored that Fenrir was 'picky' about who they accepted and turned away, but they did not know any specifics outside of the rumors they heard from other random humans they happened to come across during their travels. Unfortunately, they were not high on options.

Despite their best efforts, there were still times when members of their group became victims due to Aragami attacks. As much as they didn't want to, they were forced to leave someone behind for the sake of the greater number. It was only a matter of time before all of them died unless they managed to find a true safe haven or some miracle purged the Aragami from existence. Death or a miracle were the only options.

/

After observing several different buildings, Azumi and Yu finally settled on one. It appeared to be the most together, and the chances of obtaining something useful were substantially higher. However, just like any other building they had been to, this one was crumbling apart. Broken piece of cement and stone littered the ground. They had to watch their step. They knew that even minor injuries could become fatal without immediate assistance. Even though they had a person with some medical knowledge, their supplies weren't exactly unlimited. They had to do their best to conserve what they had for as long as possible.

When they entered the building, they pulled down on their half masks and placed their googles on their foreheads. Without the googles on, they could see the interior of the build much easier. Azumi looked throughout the area before turning to her brother and ordering, "Okay Yu. Same plan as usual. You keep a lookout while I pick up what I can find."

"Right sis." Yu nodded, "You can count on me."

"If you see anything, and I mean **anything** ," Azumi emphasized, "you call out for me."

Yu replied, "Yes sis."

Azumi demanded. "You got that?"

"Yes sis." Yu insisted, "I know the drill."

"Good. I'll try to be back as quickly as I can." A shiver ran up Azumi's spine as she said, "I got a feeling we probably shouldn't stay too long."

"You always have that feeling sis." Yu replied.

"And it's usually right." Azumi ordered, "Get in position." Seeing Yu follow her order, Azumi walked out of the room and began her search.

While Yu kept watch as usual, Azumi looked through the rooms of the decaying building. With each step she took, she could hear the building creak. It sounded as if she put any more weight it would cause the entire building to collapse. Given how much the world decayed, it was a distinct possibility.

Despite the unfortunate possibilities, Azumi knew she could not let that stop her. She pressed onward keeping an eye open for any supplies that could be salvaged and brought back to the camp. Azumi looked through every room she could and opened the remains of various draws and shelves. It was the normal routine when it came to scavenging. By checking every corner, she did find some things worth taking.

When it came to scavenging, anything that might have some use was fair game, especially metal. Anytime she found something that could be used, Azumi could not help but smile. "This could come in handy." Azumi said to herself as she placed it in the bag.

/

To describe lookout duty as being a dull activity would be putting it lightly. However, Yu understood he needed to do it just in case if anyone or anything came by. The last thing they needed was for someone to get them while both their backs were turned.

Yu preferred it when they brought at least one other guy with them which allowed him to pass the lookout duty to someone else. However, no one else wished to accompany this time either because they were preoccupied with other tasks or not wanting to. Their father was leading a group of his own, and Yu was glad they didn't have to babysit the 'scavengers' that went with him. As a result, Azumi and Yu had to make do with their limited options.

"Yawn." Yu opened his mouth as he yawned out of boredom. "Man. I hope sis doesn't take too long here." While Yu attempted to keep his guard up, it was very easy for him to let it down.

 **Creak**.

Suddenly, Yu heard something behind him. He looked behind him to see whatever it was, was not his sister. Yu did not have a chance to wield his knife before he was tackled to the ground. However, he was able to shout, "Sis! We got company!"

Yu's knife was knocked to the ground, and a large muscular man lifted the boy from behind. That did little to render Yu docile as he brought his head down and then slammed it backwards to smash right into the man's chest. He did it again and again. He was not going to go down without a fight.

"Hah." The man laughed in amusement at Yu's resistance.

Unfortunately for Yu, his efforts were doing little against his captor. The man was far bigger and stronger than him. There was nothing that could be done to break free, but that did not stop Yu from trying as he kept attempting to squirm and kick his way out. However, his resistance came to an end the moment the man who was holding him held a knife to his throat.

"I'd stop if I were you." The man told him. "I don't really want to do this, but I will." His voice was saying one thing, but the smile while he held the knife said another.

When Yu came to a stop, Yu looked to see the man holding him captive was accompanied by three others. While Yu stopped resisting, it didn't stop him from giving this warning, "You better let me go if you know what's good for you."

"Oh really?" A dark haired man mockingly replied, "Why's that?"

"My sister will kill you all." From the tone of Yu's voice, it sounded like he was stating a fact, but it did little to unnerve his captives.

"Oh so the other person was your sister?" The man holding him captive smirked as he said, "This ought to be fun."

/

The moment Azumi heard her brother call out, she dropped her backpack and pulled her gun out of its holster. She moved quickly, but she didn't run. She remained vigilant until she rounded a corner to see four large men with one of them holding her brother hostage. There didn't appear to be any more than them. It seemed like they were all attempting to intimidate her into doing what they wanted.

"You might as well show yourself." The one holding her brother called out.

"I didn't plan on hiding." Azumi stepped out holding her gun.

As soon as the group holding her brother hostage saw her pointing a gun in their direction, two of them looked as if they were in need of a clean pair of pants as their arrogance was quickly replaced with terror and sweat. It was a sight Azumi normally found amusing. However, this time Azumi was all business. Her face remained sharp as she pointed her gun towards the man holding her brother. He responded by lifting her brother higher and putting the knife closer to his throat.

A shorter man with lighter hair shouted, "Holy shit! She has a gun!"

"Oh man!" A man with dark hair that went past his shoulders replied in horror, "I didn't see this coming!"

"Relax you two." The hostage taker remarked, "It probably doesn't have any bullets."

The hostage taker's right-hand man added, "Yeah it's not like bullets were ever easy to come by before the apocalypse."

As the four men talked among themselves, Azumi did a quick analysis of them. None of them appeared to have a gun of their own. Only the one who was holding her brother hostage had a knife, who appeared to be the ringleader. They were all muscular men, but they were 'underequipped.' Based on their reactions, none of them were particularly experienced dealing with survivors who fought back, which was just fine with her.

Azumi glared at the hostage taker as she continued pointing her gun right at him. "Well aren't you guys brave for taking a thirteen year old hostage."

The leader was undeterred by that comment as he continued to hold her brother captive with a knife inches from his throat. "A lot of nasty things are necessary to survive. Doesn't mean we like them." It was hard for Azumi to tell if he was being sincere or not, but she could care less.

Despite the circumstances, Azumi attempted to reason, "We don't exactly have much to steal. Pulling something like this is pointless."

"Anything is better than nothing." The leader replied, "I'm sure you can agree."

Azumi fixated on her target as she replied, "Almost, but not quite." He was not about to make her let her guard.

"Hmph. Anyway, so you're this kid's sister huh?" As soon as he got a good look at her face, he remarked, "Have to say you're kind of a letdown."

"You have other things to worry about." Azumi stated, "I'm sure I don't need to tell you what this is."

"It's a gun scar face, but I bet it's a fake or doesn't have any bullets." The leader was rather 'suicidality' confident to say the least. The smirk on his face was one Azumi wanted to erase.

"Are you sure you guys want to take that bet?" Azumi replied, "You might just regret it."

The man with darker hair replied, "Maybe we should listen to her. She looks really serious."

"Shut up!" The right-hand man replied, "That's enough out of you."

"I'm only going to say this once." Azumi steadied herself by holding the handle with both hands as she coldly threatened her brother's captor, "If you don't want a hole between your eyes, let my brother go, drop your weapon, and walk away. No one dies."

"Hah." The man raised his head in laughter at Azumi's threat. "I don't think so. Even if you did have bullets, you wouldn't shoot me! Not wit –"

 **Bang**!

The man could not finish his sentence as a hole formed in the middle of his forehead. Azumi did not hesitate to pull the trigger after he failed to head her warning. If they did not listen to the first, she saw no point in giving another. Her finger began pressing on the trigger after he laughed, and she was sure she had a clean shot. The man moving his head was all she needed.

After she pulled the trigger, the gunshot roared throughout the remains of the building and echoed to the outside. The man's head jerked back as the bullet entered between his eyes and exited through the other side. He did not have time to process what happened to him before his mind went blank and his blood and brains became a decoration for the wall behind him. His body went limp as he fell down, and he could no longer grip the boy. Both he and the boy fell to the ground with a loud 'thud.' The man's eyes remained opened as they continued to stare blankly and lifelessly at the ceiling while a pool of blood formed underneath him.

The tip of the gun was hot from the bullet. Despite having more bullets, Azumi quickly holstered her weapon, and she pulled out her signature knife on her right thigh instead. It was a gift from a friend that was forged from material Azumi had gathered. The reach of the blade was slightly longer than any other knives she could choose for her arsenal, and the sharpness of the edges allowed her to cut through flesh easier. Needless to say, Azumi preferred to keep this one on hand.

It took a moment for the three remaining men to process what exactly happened. However, all it took was to see the lifeless look on their leader's face and the blood on the wall and floor for it to click. They all turned to the girl who had delivered this fate to their leader.

A reasonable person would most likely runaway from a dangerous person like Azumi after she demonstrated the capacity to utilize lethal force. However, they let anger and hatred overshadow that. Even the two that were originally fearful of her let their anger replace their terror as they barred their fangs at their new target.

"You bitch!" In that moment, the three remaining men paid no head to the boy on the ground. The girl who stood in front of them was all that mattered. She had to die. Nothing else mattered.

Two of the men ran at Azumi and attempted to hit Azumi at the same time. However, their lack of coordination did not do them any favors. Their fists hit nothing but air as Azumi ducked down. The two of them ended up crashing into each other.

Azumi wasted no time to conduct a counterattack on both of them. While Azumi was kneeling on the ground, she raised up her knife and stuck it through the light haired man's kneecap. Azumi could feel the knife break through the support structure of the man's leg as she her heard him scream out, "Gaah!" The man was forced onto his left knee while Azumi had her knife embedded in his right knee like it was Excalibur.

While keeping her knife in the light haired man's kneecap, Azumi punched the dark haired man right in his groin. It caused the man to bow over in pain as if he was paying respect or apologizing. From where Azumi was standing, he might as well as been apologizing for wasting his life. Azumi then jumped up pulling the knife from the first man's kneecap and delivered a crushing blow to the man's lower jaw with her right knee which sent him flying in the air.

Before the light haired man behind Azumi could attempt to recover from the wound, Azumi spun around with her knife in hand. She felt the blade cut through the tender flesh of the man's throat. She could feel the blade cut deep enough to sever his windpipe. She could literally feel his lifeline be severed. It was done in a swift motion that was finished before her victim could realize what happened before it was too late.

"Glurgh!" That was all the man could say as blood began pouring from his mouth and throat as he fell to the ground.

Azumi did not have time to admire her work as she turned to the last member of the group. However, she was unable to react as he tackled her to the ground which caused her to drop her knife. Before Azumi could recover, the man was on top of her and she could feel the fingers of the large man's hands encircle around her neck as they began to press into her.

"Gah!" She could feel his fingers and palms constricting around her trachea attempting to crush her windpipe like a straw.

As Azumi gasped for breath, she could see into the man's eyes. They were filled with nothing but rage that desired nothing more than to see her die right then and there. With each passing second, the man's fingers continued to squeeze air out of Azumi's body, and her face became as red as a tomato and tears were forming in the corners of her sockets.

However, despite feeling life drain from her body, Azumi's face did not become one of terror. Instead, she gritted her teeth and narrowed her eyes as she stared at her enemy with defiance. She was not going to call for help or beg for mercy. She was not going to give him the satisfaction.

That look only made the man want to kill her more. Azumi attempted to pry the man's hands off with her right hand while attempting to grab her left thigh knife with the other. It was times like these she was glad she equipped herself with two knives. The man's attention was so fixated on Azumi's face, he did not pay attention to what her other arm was doing.

Azumi was successful in pulling out her other blade and she quickly stabbed him in the side of his stomach. She could feel knife break through the man's flesh. It was as if she was about to gut him like a fish when she began twisting the knife.

"Gah!" The large man definitely felt that, especially as Azumi twisted the knife. However, he did not try to do anything about it. His eyes remained fixated on Azumi's face. He was going to give it everything he had to finish the job. His grip slacked for a moment only for him to force himself to maintain his hold. As far as he was concerned, there was nothing that was going to stop him from making sure that this girl died. Even if it meant going down with her.

The man said to her, "You'll have to do better than that …"

 **Thud**!

Before that man could finish his sentence, a rock collided into the right side of his face. Azumi could see the rock caused a couple of her attacker's teeth to become dislodged, and they went flying across the room. They could hear the teeth roll around like marbles when they hit the ground. Both his mouth and nose began to bleed, and the man's grip on her throat slackened considerably.

Azumi could hear Yu cry out, "Don't touch my sister!"

"Son of a …" The man began to curse.

The moment the man's grip loosened around Azumi's neck, she withdrew her knife from his gut and belted him with her right hand which caused him to roll over. Despite his superior size, Azumi's strength, his lack of readiness, and his blood loss weakened him considerably. Azumi quickly punched him a second time. Her fist managed to finish the job the rock started. When her fist smashed into the man's face, a loud cracking sound could be heard before his nose began bleeding like a faucet as he was knocked on his back.

Before the man had a chance to recover, Azumi was on top of him, and she wasted no time. Azumi held the knife above her head and plunged it down towards her enemy. He did not have a chance to cry out. She could feel her knife cut through the man's windpipe as if it was butter, and she twisted it. Then blood began emerging from the wound like a fountain.

"Glurgh!" The man began to cough as blood began emerging from his mouth as well as his throat. The man was not only dying from the blade in his throat. He was choking on his own blood. It was not a quick nor painless death by any means. However, Azumi did not care, especially after what happened.

This man was going to die. It did not matter how strong he was. No man could survive an injury like that. Azumi had seen it before. While the man was dying, Azumi got off him and noticed the other man she knocked to the side was getting up. However, he had no chance of recovery.

Yu held a rock over his head and brought it down on the dark haired man's head as hard as he could. Yu could feel the bone in the man's head shatter like glass underneath his attack which left a visible indentation in his forehead. The man's skull was utterly smashed by the blunt force trauma. He would not be getting up again. With the last man next to her about to die, all four of their enemies had been neutralized.

As the fire of life in the would-be strangler's eyes began to extinguish, the man continued to glare at Azumi. "Grarh!" The main continued to choke on his own blood as he attempted to raise his hands at her. However, he lacked the strength to do anything as the life began to drain from his body and he became limp. Within a matter of moments, the man's fire was snuffed out as he laid in a pool of his own blood that was ever expanding. Azumi paid him no mind as she attempted to wipe the tears that formed in her eyes as well the blood off herself. Shen then checked herself for injuries besides what he did to her throat.

Azumi placed her hand on her throat to feel that the man definitely left an injury on her neck. With her neck free and her enemies defeated, Azumi took a long deep breath. Luckily for her, she was sure that the man didn't do any permanent damage to her throat before Yu was able to conduct interference. It was a relief to feel the air enter her nose, move through her lungs and exit through her mouth with little trouble besides feeling sore as the air moved through her throat. Considering how she was nearly suffocated, a little sourness was the best she could hope for.

As Azumi put her hand on her neck and did her best to breath, her brother rushed to her side and knelt down beside her. "I'm sorry sis. I'm so sorry. I tried to keep a lookout, but they got me from behind, and …"

"Don't worry about it Yu." Azumi interrupted her brother. She then placed her hand on her brother's shoulder and asked, "Are you okay? Did they hurt you?"

"I'm fine. He didn't cut me, but what about you?" Yu could see the marks on her neck the man left behind. "That guy … He …"

While Azumi could not see the red marks, she could feel them. They would serve as a nice reminder for Azumi's latest brush with death until they finally went away. Her only response was to bluntly tell her brother, "He tried to strangle me, but he didn't thanks to you."

"Um …" Clearly her brother was not as okay with that response which Azumi was quick to pick up on.

"I'll be fine." Azumi did her best to assure her brother, "Just another day Yu. Just another day."

"…" Yu did not have much to say other than, "I'm sorry. That shouldn't have happened to you. I … I …"

"You let your guard down, and you didn't have your knife ready did you?" Azumi rhetorically asked.

"… I … I didn't." Yu reluctantly and shamefully admitted.

"Ahem." Azumi attempted to clear her throat. "It's okay Yu." Azumi placed her hand on her brother's shoulder again. "Just try to make sure to learn a lesson from this." Yu was listening intently to his sister's words as she told him, "Make sure to always have your guard up and be ready to pull out your weapon. You got me?"

"Yes Azumi." Yu nodded, "I'll be sure to remember that."

"Good." Azumi replied, "Be sure to always remember." Suddenly Azumi winced, "Grh." The pain on her neck was not going to be going away anytime soon.

"Sis … Your neck …" While Yu was concerned, he was not entirely sure how to finish the question, "Are you sure it's going to be …?"

"Don't … Don't worry." Azumi answered, "I'll get the doc to look it over after we get back. I'll be fine. I promise."

"… Okay sis." Yu wanted to believe his sister.

"All right. That's enough of that." Azumi stood up and cleared her throat again before ordering her brother, "Take anything useful from them and put it in your bag while I get mine. Be quick because I'll be back in a minute, and we should get going right away."

Yu did not say a word of rebuttal and did as he was told. He was quick to grab the knife from the man who took him hostage. Now he had two knives just like his sister.

Likewise, Azumi walked over to retrieve her own knife that was knocked to the side in the earlier struggle. As Azumi walked pass the corpse of the man who attempted to strangle her, she gave him one glance. Not only did she see that his eyes were still open, but she could see that despite the fire of life being snuffed out, his hatred of her remained undying. She could see in his eyes that his final regret was not bringing her down with him. Unfortunately for him, death did not call for her number, but it called his.

"…" Azumi took a moment before sighing and kneeling down to close his eyes.

Azumi cleaned the blood and sheathed her knife. She looked back at the corpses left in her wake and how she decorated the room with a new color which caused her to silent muse, "Father is not going to be happy about this." As Azumi walked away she warned her brother, "Make sure to have your weapon ready this time." 

"I will." Yu replied as he continued to loot the bodies.

True to her word Azumi reclaimed her backpack and after ensuring nothing was taken she headed back to her brother who seemed to have more luck than she thought with taking supplies and material from the bodies. Between what she collected and what he retrieved, their village will have a fair amount of supplies to keep them going. Despite the circumstances, it did make Azumi pleased to know they had a lot to bring back to the group.

Azumi sighed in relief as she muttered, "One less thing to worry about." She told her brother, "All right good job Yu." Azumi then ordered, "Now let's get out of here before any more of them show up."

"There's more of them?" Yu replied fearfully.

"They were probably scouts like us, so I'm sure they got a group or something nearby." Azumi reminded her brother, "Don't forget Yu. It'd be more dangerous to assume they were alone."

"Yeah … right." Yu reflexively moved his hand to his neck.

"We got to warn the camp about another group that could be a problem for us." Azumi stated, "If they really are part of a group, they won't take kindly to four of their own getting killed. If they spot us, they might put two and two together."

"Right." Yu nodded.

After putting their half masks and goggles back on, Azumi ordered, "All right. Let's go." Azumi headed out of the building with Yu following closely behind.

/

As soon as they exited the building, they could hear an all too familiar sound. It was the sound of loud footsteps that echoed in the air. It was a sound that Azumi could never get used to no matter how much she heard it. She could feel a shiver crawl up her spin and the hairs on her back stand up. Both Azumi and Yu knew exactly what this was. It was the Aragami.

"Shit! The gunfire must've attracted them!" Azumi rushed back to the ruined building as she repeated, "Get to cover! Get to cover!"

As they thought, it was the Aragami, specifically the Ogretail type, and there was a herd of them. The monsters had unforgettable golden eyes with slit pupils that resembled a cat, and they had an ogre-like face. Their mouths were gigantic with razor sharp teeth that resembled a sharks along with two extremely long piercing teeth attached to the bottom jaw that were similar to a sabretooth. Its body appeared to be covered in fur while its legs and lower body resembled that of a mini-tyrannosaurus rex. Its tail appeared to be silver with an end that looked like it could be used as a spear. While they generally devoured the corpses of other Aragami, they still had plenty of room in their appetite for humans.

With each step the Aragami took, the two survivors could feel the ground shake. Despite being one of the 'smaller' types of Aragami, it didn't stop them causing an impact. The only good thing was that they were walking. If the Aragami had sensed them, they would not be moving at this pace. The two of them did their best not to make a sound to attract their attention.

Yu nervously whispered to his sister, "Wha … What do we do sis?"

Azumi could feel sweat pouring down her pores as she slowly took a breath and answered, "Keep hiding."

Yu silently nodded in response. The two remained perfectly still and did not share anymore words out of fear that even the slightest bit of noise might attract the predators to their location. At first it looked as if the Aragami might pass by the area only for them to suddenly come to a stop. The Aragami suddenly began looking around the area as if they were looking for something. They had sensed something, but they didn't appear to know what it was.

When Azumi witnessed this development, her eyes were wide open as a million thoughts went through her mind, _"Crap! Did they hear us or something? I thought we were being quiet! They shouldn't have heard us! Did they smell us? Can they smell us? Doesn't matter! This isn't good!"_

Azumi glanced towards her brother who was shaking in his boots. If the monsters attacked now, he had no chance of escape. She grabbed her brother's shoulder and tried to remain quiet as she told him, "Yu. Get ahold of yourself."

"Ah huff … Ah huff …" Yu breathed heavily as he nodded.

"Yu. If those monsters come this way, I want you to run like hell." Azumi ordered.

"O … Okay." Yu slowly replied.

Azumi asked, "You know where the camp is right?"

"Y … Yeah." Yu was not liking where Azumi was going with this.

"Good. Run right there. Don't stop until you get to mom and dad." Azumi shook his shoulder as she emphasized, "You got that?"

"Yes, but … but what about you?" Yu nervously asked.

"I'll draw their attention away." Azumi replied.

Yu's eyes were wide open in horror. "But … But they'll eat you."

"I've been surviving out here longer than you kid." Azumi did her best to grin at her brother even as the sweat continued to creep down her face. "If either of us has a shot at getting away from those things, it's me."

"But … But sis …" Yu weakly protested.

"I'm your big sister." Even with her throat hurting, she was not about to let that stop her from getting her point across. "I'm in charge, and you already promised to listen to me when we're out here. I'm telling you to run like hell while I lead them away. If you don't, I'm going to be seriously pissed. You got that?"

"Y … Yeah." Yu reluctantly replied.

"Good." Azami looked to see the Aragami were combing the rumble nearby as she told her brother. "If I give you the signal, you run and don't look back."

Azumi's eyes remained fixed on the Aragami. She didn't dare to take her eyes off them as pulled out her gun from its holster. Even if a gun couldn't hurt an Aragami, it could at the very least cause a distraction. That would be all Azumi would need.

The young girl's eyes continued to gaze upon the Aragami as she took off her backpack and gently handed it to her brother, "Make sure to take this bag too."

"But sis …" Yu attempted to protest again.

Azumi kept her eyes on the Aragami as she interrupted and instructed her brother, "The camp needs any supplies they can get and it'll just slow me down so take it. Your job is to make sure they get it." While instructing her brother, she did her best to remain as stealthy as possible which was proving to be difficulty. Luckily, her injured throat already made her voice low.

As reluctant as Yu washed could not argue with his sister's points. He took the backpack and held onto it. Azumi held onto her gun and Yu could see that his sister's arms were shaking. It was ever so slightly, but they were shaking. He could see for himself his sister was just trying to make him feel better.

"Ah huff! Ah huff!" Azumi's heavy breathing was noticeable while wearing the half mask. She continued to breathe in through her nose and uncomfortably out her mouth as she watched the Aragami continue to scour the area. It was only a matter of time before they were spotted.

Azumi could feel herself sweating profusely with every step they took, and her shaking was becoming far more noticeable.

' **Thump**!' ' **Thump**!' ' **Thump!** ' ' **Thump!** '

Even though Yu could not hear it, Azumi could feel her heart beating faster and faster with each passing second. She was feeling both dread and adrenaline pumping through her veins. The Aragami would be coming any moment. It was almost time.

"Get ready." Azumi instructed her brother.

Suddenly, the Aragami began running to what they sensed, but it was not in their direction. It was toward another building, and Azumi heard someone shout, "Holy crap! The Aragami found us! Run! Run!"

"Aaahh!" Azumi and Yu could hear people screaming as the Aragami gave chase. A few moments later, the only trace left of the Aragami were the footsteps. Azumi and Yu could hear them in the distance, but the Aragami were too preoccupied with their current meals to hear or notice them.

Azumi could feel her heart finally slowing down and her breathing becoming steady. "Hmph. Looks like the gunshot also attracted them too. Lucky us." She placed her gun back in its holster and wiped the sweat from her brow before looking back to where the Aragami had run off to.

"Shouldn't we do something about them?" Yu asked.

"Hell no." Azumi replied, "Those guys were probably with those assholes who just tried to kill us. Its better them than us. If anything, this might've killed two birds with one stone."

"Oh …" Yu replied in a low tone.

"We should get out of here before anymore come. We got to warn the camp." Azumi quickly checked to make sure she still had her gun and both her knives before reminding her brother, "Don't let your guard down Yu. Even if it looks like the coast is clear don't let it down, you got that?"

"Yes." Yu replied.

"I asked, 'You got that'?" Azumi repeated.

Yu answered, "I do sis. I really do."

"Good." Azumi stated, "Keep your eyes open and follow my lead."

Even with the reprieve, they were not safe. Nowhere was safe as long as the Aragami remained on the top of the food chain. Azumi took her bag back from her brother and ordered, "Come on. Let's go before anymore show up." Azumi began sprinting toward their camp. Followed closely by her brother.

Azumi could have moved even faster, but she didn't since her brother was having a hard enough time keeping up as it was. Azumi did not say a word other than occasionally glancing over her shoulder to make sure her brother was keeping up the pace. She made sure to pay attention to her surroundings. Luckily for them, there did not appear to be anymore Aragami nor humans nearby.

Today was just another day for the Kannagi siblings. Danger existed around every corner regardless of whether it was human or monster. This was the way of the world. It was back to 'survival of the fittest.' These two had done what they could to survive and they would continue to do so. What's past is prologue and this was theirs.

/

 **Author Notes** : Just to be clear, "What's past is prologue" is a quote from William Shakespeare in his play the Tempest. I decided to have it written that his name was lost to history to represent people are starting to lose touch with history and literature due to the decay of the world. It would be great symbolism to show how both intellectually and physically the world had fallen.

While it is likely some of the older generation might still remember Shakespeare specifically wrote that, the number of that generation is dwindling. As a result, people of the younger generation would be unware who wrote that quote if they happened to hear someone say it. Case in point, Azumi and Yu would have no idea of that quotes origins. They happened to hear their father say it, and they didn't bother asking him about it since they agreed the quote seemed self-explanatory.

When I was considering whether or not to write this, I had a lot of motivation to strongly consider various ideas, especially in regards to Kannagi Yu. TV Tropes and some other fans of the God Eater franchise think of Kannagi Yu as being a 'protagonist without a past.' While it is true we really don't know anything about him before him becoming a God Eater, I would strongly disagree with that. Everyone has a past. It all shapes us into who we are. As you can see the past Azumi and Yu experienced has shaped them into who they are at the beginning of this story, and it will continue to shape them as they move forward. What they will become will be another matter entirely.

Unlike the anime which has Lenka and his family not be blood related, Azumi and Yu are blood related. As indicated by their ages and narration, Azumi was born a few years before the apocalypse while Yu was born a couple of years after. While Azumi might not remember much about the world before, she remembers enough to know that life was not always about fighting every day to survive. As a result, Azumi considered her brother's birth to be one of the few good things about the apocalypse. It was proof that not everything had to be dark and bleak.

According to the Japanese name website that I got the inspiration for Azumi's name, her name apparently means 'safe residence.' It is a fitting name because she wants her brother and family to be safe. She will do what she can to make sure of that as shown in her handling of the people holding her brother hostage. She did try to reason and threaten them into backing down, but when that wasn't going to work, she became violent.

I feel rather proud of how I depicted Azumi's use of violence in this story. She has capabilities in gunplay, knives, and physical ability. Additionally, I feel Azumi is by far the darkest protagonist I've developed so far. While Narukami Rei is a vigilante in "Into the Fog" that beats up lots of gang members and punks, she never used lethal force like Azumi. Azumi on the other hand was able to kill those men without considering mercy, and she did not bat an eyelash because they were her enemies. This chapter alone puts her on a different level than previous protagonists in my stories.

Some of these survival scenes were inspired by the awesome video game, "The Last of Us." I remember how while Ellie would occasionally face difficulties with enemies, she proved to be very useful. For example, there were times when she would occasionally grab something, such as a brick and throw it at the enemy which would give Joel/player a chance to take him down. Additionally, Ellie was good for other saves thanks to that knife of hers. I wanted Azumi and Yu to be like that in this story more or less.

Between the Walking Dead and the Last of Us, I've seen enough post-apocalyptic stories to know that other humans are just as likely to be the enemy as the monsters. In the anime, we have seen there are plenty of human groups that formed communities who worked and looked out for each other. However, I'm pretty sure there would be just as many humans that would probably do the exact opposite. This isn't the first time Azumi and Yu have encountered such issues which is partly why neither are too troubled at killing the people, especially since it was self-defense, but not everyone shares the sentiment.

Not only was this story my first attempt to write a post-apocalyptic story, but it marked the first time I actually attempted to write a brother-sister team. I think I'm off to a good start. I wanted to emphasize how much Azumi and Yu mean to each other. Azumi is fiercely protective of her brother and acts as his mentor while Yu wants to do what he can to protect his sister in turn. What do you think of how I portrayed their brother sister relationship in the first chapter? I hope I did well.

I hope everyone enjoyed reading this first chapter, and I hope you will provide a review for the work I've done. I would definitely be interested in writing more chapters and more reviews would definitely help me feel motivated for continuing it. Hope you all enjoy playing God Eater Resurrection and God Eater 2 Rage Burst.


	2. Divided

**Author Notes** : First I would like to take a moment to thank **Fokshee** for the cover she produced for "Past is Prologue" along with the character designs that **s0ulafein** produced. As you can guess, the two characters are Azumi and Yu in the middle of an exploration/scavenging mission. I think the artwork captures the tone and the feeling of the characters beautifully. I look forward to future artwork they will produce for me.

Shortly after finishing the pilot chapter along with receiving generally favorable reviews, I felt the need to continue to story at least for a little longer. Not to mention, this story was proving to be fun to write and plan like some of my previous stories. I'm hoping you are having a fun time reading it. While I am pleased by the mostly positive reviews, I was a little surprised by some of the comments.

For the 'Zombie Apocalypse' comment, as far as I'm concerned, the God Eater world can have similarities to such an environment, but there is one major difference that will always set Aragami apart from the others. Unlike the zombies in the Walking Dead or the infected in 'The Last of Us,' Aragami can't be harmed by regular weapons. As a result, the people who do not possess a God Arc are incapable of defending themselves against these monsters, so you can almost think of it as a deconstruction of something like a Zombie Apocalypse since the odds are far more stacked against humanity.

The point of this story was meant to do something different. Rather than starting the protagonist with being a God Eater, I figured it would be far more interesting to start the protagonists off as being powerless. Instead of being able to fight these monsters whenever they could, they can do nothing but run and hide. I partly got the idea of that from Episode 10 of the God Eater anime which was one of the most well received episodes of the anime.

I am pleased with the reception of the sibling relationship between Azumi and Yu. As one of my reviewers pointed out, a close sibling relationships is hard to pull off, but I think I was able to get the hang of it pretty quickly. Similar to the previous chapter, you can expect this one to feature more insight in regards to Azumi and Yu's brother-sister and mentor-student relationship. I really want to develop a bond between these two that would be understandable for these circumstances, especially since she has taught him how to survive in a horrible terrain. It is possible that Azumi took a bigger role in raising Yu than their parents.

In Japan, with the exception of police officers and armed officials, it is 'difficult' for people to obtain firearms. That would be putting it mildly. In fact, from my understanding it is illegal for most if not all civilians to have weapons. Due to Azumi and Yu's father being a police officer before the Aragami came into existence, he had access to the weapons. That came in handy since he was able to take a number of guns and ammunition. Over the years, he has trained a few people, including Azumi to use a firearm. Yu has no experience when it comes to guns, so Azumi is the one who holds it due to being more skilled, older. Additionally, there are not enough to go around, so Yu might not even receive a gun if he did have training.

As usual, I hope you will enjoy reading this chapter, and I hope you will leave a review. I look forward to knowing your thoughts.

/

Past is Prologue

Story Arc One – Surviving in the Wild – Part II

Chapter Two – Right, Wrong, and Gray Part I – Divided

/

Life should be simple

Right and wrong good and evil

Life is not simple

/

 **Location: Japan**

 **Date: June 28, 2068 – Afternoon**

While Azumi and Yu were exploring the ruins of this desolate city, another group was doing the same. As with Azumi and Yu, this group wore half masks and goggles while they traversed the terrain to protect themselves from the elements. They would only take them off when they were inside the buildings. This group was being led by their father, Kannagi Haru.

Kannagi Haru shared the same dark hair and dark brown eyes that his daughter and son possessed. Similar to his daughter, he had a few noticeable scars on his face, such as a scar that stretched across his forehead and one that streaked across the right side of his face that chipped his ear. According to him, he received the latter of the scars from his previous work as a police officer during a gun fight.

Due to Haru's former profession, he had always dedicated his life to law, order, and keeping people safe long after his job came to an end. During the first few years of the apocalypse, he encountered a number of people during his family' travels. Over time, their group expanded beyond their family of four.

As their group expanded, they needed leadership. Haru's experience as a police officer made him the logical choice to lead their group. He also appointed people to be part of this 'council.' He has done his best to teach people how to fight and use weapons, such as guns, but he warned them that they were only to be used as a last resort, especially since even one gunshot might attract a nearby Aragami.

For years, Haru had always made Azumi accompany him on their expeditions, but for the past year or so Azumi had decided to start taking more action on her own, which included mentoring her little brother. Despite some misgivings that Haru had regarding his daughter, he knew he needed more scouting parties to look for supplies, especially after some losses they had suffered from the Aragami, and he was short on volunteers. Additionally, Azumi was legally an adult even by the previous world's standards.

Due to Azumi legally being an adult and proving her capability, Haru reluctantly allowed Azumi to take her own initiative. Unlike him, she either went alone, with her brother, or they had a 'guest' accompanying them. Her results have 'generally been good,' but there have been 'mixed feelings' about some of her actions. Some he felt uneasy about.

Haru's group left the camp at around the same time Azumi and Yu left. The group that Haru was leading was composed of several group members. Their names were Abe Izumi, Nakahara Shin, and Moto Kouta. All three of them had dark hair, and they were in reasonable shape. However, they were not as 'combat proficient' as Azumi was. In fact, it was possible that Yu might be able to take them on as well. Similar to Haru, they had grown up and lived in the world that it used to be before the Aragami had overrun it.

After traversing the area, Haru led the group into a building that was still together enough to have multiple floors. He figured the bigger the building, the more likely they would have supplies that they could find. Everyone knew their jobs. Izumi would act as the lookout while the other three would scavenge for anything that could be useful. However, the footsteps they all heard would render the need of a lookout moot.

All four of them could hear the sounds of thunderous footsteps. It sounded as if they could cause an earthquake with each passing step, and it was getting closer by the second. All four of them could feel the sweat rolling down their faces as they backed away from any window that could give the predators a view of a potential meal.

"Holy crap! Holy crap!" Izumi panicked upon hearing the footsteps. "It's the Aragami! What're we going to do? What're we going to do? What …"

"Quiet!" Haru ordered his subordinate. He remained low as he made his way over to the window and peaked through to see the Aragami were moving around, but they had not set their sights in their direction. "Remain calm. They haven't noticed us yet. If we remain quiet, it'll stay that way."

"Right." Shin was the only other one to remain calm.

"But we can't stay here." Kouta pointed out, "They'll notice us eventually. It doesn't matter if we stay quiet or not. We need to put distance between us."

Shin was quick to suggest, "There's a backdoor downstairs we can use. I didn't see any Aragami there before."

"That's our best bet then. Come on." Haru ordered and the group quietly made their way to the ground floor. When they reached the bottom, he remained low as he peaked through the window while hunched over to see that the Aragami were still not looking in their direction. "Okay." Haru spoke as he crept back to the group. "This might be our best chance. We'll circle around and make our way back to camp."

Kouta cautiously asked, "Shouldn't we make sure the escape route is clear first?"

"Already on that." Haru stood by the door as he instructed his group, "I'll take point and signal the rest of you to follow." He slowly opened the backdoor and saw there was nothing blocking their escape and no one in sight. He waved his hand to his followers, and as expected they followed his lead. His signal was all they needed to know the coast was clear.

Haru and his three subordinates remained silent and low. Talking was kept to an absolute minimum. Silence was the key to survival. Every time Haru ensured the coast was clear at each landmark, he would signal for his men to follow. However, in one moment, the need for stealth was rendered moot when a loud bang could be heard echoing in the distance.

There was no mistaking the sound. Haru could tell it was gunfire. No sooner did that sound echo in the air, he heard the Aragami growl. Haru moved to see that the Aragami were moving towards the source of the sound. Any sound he made didn't register to them.

"Sir." Izumi began speaking in a concerned tone, "That gunshot … Was it …?"

"Yes. Yes it was …" Haru bit his lip. _"Azumi … Yu …"_ He then looked at his men before ordering, "Let's head back to camp."

"But sir …" Izumi attempted to protest, "What about …?"

"There's nothing we can do right now." Haru looked in the direction as he ordered his group. "Let's head back and try to think of something."

When it looked like Izumi would have difficulty following that order, Shin spoke up, "He's right. We need to be smart about this. Let's get moving. We'll try to help Azumi and Yu after we regroup." Afterwards, Haru led his group back to their camp.

/

 **Location: Japan – Temporary Camp**

 **Date: June 28, 2068 – Evening**

Shortly after returning to the camp, Haru did not try to cover any of the inconvenient facts. While people did not see the Aragami, they heard the thunderous footsteps earlier, and Haru confirmed they were indeed Aragami. However, he was quick to add they appeared to be moving away from their camp which put some people at ease. Unfortunately, considering the losses they had suffered before, some people were still on edge knowing Aragami were nearby. Several noticed Azumi and Yu were still absent, and they became fearful of their fates. Fortunately, their fears for Azumi and Yu were quickly dispelled.

While Haru and the others were considering strategies, they were informed there would be no need for that. Shortly after they arrived at the camp, Azumi and Yu returned as well. They were also informed that Azumi and Yu were not completely unscathed, especially Azumi due to the noticeable marks on her neck that were clearly not there before. There was a story behind this. Just like many stories Azumi had to tell, they were 'colorful,' but they were not pretty.

Azumi and Yu were able to return to their camp without encountering any further problems. However, as soon as they arrived back, they heard, "Hey look!" One of the younger boys called out, "Azumi-san and Yu are back!"

"Really? They're okay?" Another boy happily asked.

"It's about time they got back?" A girl said out loud while running.

By the time Azumi and Yu arrived at the camp, they were surrounded by a bigger welcoming party than their father had. The welcoming party would have been even larger if some of the children's parents hadn't pulled them away.

"Aw mom!" A boy complained, "Why do you always do that?"

His mother warned him, "You're better off staying away from there."

"…" Their little exchange was overheard by a black haired teenager who was between Yu and Azumi's age. He did not say anything to the mother, but he narrowed his eyes as she and her son walked away before walking over to greet Azumi and Yu himself.

"Did you really see Aragami?" An excited young boy asked.

Before Azumi could answer another boy asked, "Did any Aragami see you?"

A girl asked, "Did you find any treasure?"

"Now! Now!" A teenaged girl butted in. "Give her a chance to talk."

"Ahem!" Azumi cleared her throat before answering, "She pointed to the first boy, "We saw a pack of them." She then pointed to the second boy, "Thankfully they didn't see us." Finally pointed to the girl. "Depends on what you mean by treasure."

"Really! Then …" The girl began to say only to be cut off.

"Give my sister some space." Yu stepped in. "She was hurt while we were out there."

"She got hurt?" One of the boys asked.

No sooner had Yu said anything the marks around Azumi's neck become noticeable along with the traces of blood that stained parts of her clothes.

"She really is hurt!" The young girl exclaimed.

"Go get our mother!" Yu ordered. "She'll want to know about this! You got that?"

"You got it!" The kids replied and ran off towards the camp's temporary medical area.

"Phew." Azumi breathed a sigh of relief. "Thanks for that." Azumi looked to Yu as she took another breath. Yu nodded in response."

"So you're not hurt too badly?" The teenager girl from earlier asked. The girl contrasted with Azumi for looking far more 'girly.' She was around seventeen to eighteen years old. Her face was completely free of scars, she had light brown hair that was shoulder length, and blue eyes.

"Not that badly Yashiko." Azumi cheerfully replied.

The girl Azumi referred to as Yashiko smiled before wrapping her arms around Azumi for a hug which caught Azumi by surprise. "Thank goodness you're okay." Yashiko let go but kept one hand on Azumi's shoulder, "When your father told us about Aragami heading towards you, we were afraid what might've happened."

"Heh!" Azumi grinned, 'You know me. I'm a survivor."

"Ha! Ha!" Yashiko chuckled. "You definitely are!"

"Did you guys really think a bunch for Aragami would eat us?" Azumi puffed up her chest.

"…" Yu remained silent as his sister spoke.

"I didn't think you'd have much trouble." The dark haired teenage boy spoke up. "After everything you've gotten out of, if something like that did, I'd be shocked." The dark haired teen was around seventeen to eighteen years old as well. He had a light scar on the left side of his face, he had yellowish eyes, and his hands were covered in calluses.

"Hmph." Azumi casually remarked, "Glad to see you weren't worried about us Minato."

The teenager Azumi referred to as Minato replied, "I wouldn't say that. Those marks on your neck do look serious. You really should get them checked."

"Ahem." Azumi cleared her throat before answering, "I intend to. But first I need to give my father my report." Azumi looked on to see him approaching. "I might as well get this over with."

"…" None of the others objected.

Haru looked at both Azumi and Yu and asked in a low tone, "Are the both of you all right?"

Azumi replied, "We're fine father."

Haru was quick to point out, "The marks on your neck say otherwise. What happened?"

"Ahem." Azumi replied, "That's something we need to talk about. Things might be worse in the city than we thought, and I'm not just talking about Aragami."

"Then let's talk." Haru motioned for Azumi to follow him.

"Ah huff." Azumi took a deep breath as she thought, _"Might as well get this over with."_

/

Azumi saw no point in attempting to cover it up. She inform her father about the altercation she had with other scavengers. After delivering her report to her father, she excused herself to see the doctor or the closest thing they had to a doctor, Araki Sasumu. Azumi's mother, Kannagi Kaede, was being trained under the doctor, and sat by her daughter as he examined her injury. Azumi remained perfectly still as she had during her previous examinations. It was something she had a lot of practice at. As far as they could tell, the mark on her neck and a minor bump on the back of her head were the only injuries Azumi received from her earlier confrontation.

Doctor Araki bluntly stated, "I have to say you were very lucky. If he had held on any longer, the damage would've been far worse."

"But she'll be all right won't she?" Kaede asked in concern.

"Yes she'll be fine." The doctor reassured Kaede before looking at Azumi. "I'd recommend getting some rest and you'll be as good as new."

"As if anyone can get rest here." Azumi retorted.

"Touché." The doctor ordered, "Then just do what you can to be calm for as long as possible. I'd recommend against going on any more trips for the next few days."

"Fine. Ahem." Azumi cleared her throat as she got off the makeshift examination bed. "Whatever you say doc."

"You should drink this." Doctor Araki handed Azumi a cup of tea.

The moment the drink touched her tongue, Azumi's eyes shot open. "Mfph!" Azumi had to fight the urge to spit it out when she saw Doctor Araki's stern look. She had to force herself to gulp it down.

"Eww!" Azum's face sunk when she looked what was left and she realized what it was much to her dismay. "Good grief! Not this crap again!"

"It's not the best tasting, but it'll help." Doctor Araki advised, "I'd recommend finishing."

Azumi shook her head. "You always say that."

"And I'm usually right." The doctor nonchalantly replied.

"…" Reluctantly, Azumi decided to follow the doctor's advice and finish the drink. She definitely had better, but she could tell her throat was feeling better than before.

/

While his daughter was receiving her medical examination, Haru held a meeting with several other senior members of the group. They had arrived in this location about a week ago, and they have not had any difficulty during that time. However, today was proving to be a game changer.

Haru laid out a map of Japan. While the map was based on what the world used to be like, it was the best they had. They were able to come up with estimations for other deserted settlements they could travel to and guessing how much further it would be until they arrived at Fenrir.

Kouta spoke up, "After what happened, do you think we should abandon this post?"

"I wish I can say that, but I'm not sure it'll work." Haru placed markers on the map regarding their approximate positions and where Fenrir supposedly was. He pointed out, "The distance to Fenrir is still significant. We won't be able to make it there with our trucks' current fuel supplies. Even if we drive until we're running on fumes, we'll still have at least twenty to thirty miles to walk."

Shin crossed his arms as he remarked, "It's hard enough to walk a mile in Aragami infested wasteland let alone twenty."

"That'd be impossible." Kouta exasperatedly stated.

Shin pointed at the supposed Fenrir position on the map, "Of course we're assuming Fenrir really is where we heard it is."

"We know it exists." Haru remained adamant, "I'm pretty sure it does."

Shin crossed his arms again, "I'm not saying it doesn't. It's just that if it's inaccurate, we'll be in trouble."

"You don't have to remind me." Haru wiped his forehead as he spoke, "That's why it's important for us to get all the supplies and fuel we can from here before moving out if it's possible. There might not be any suitable places to stop as we move on."

Another member of the council, Tomoko, spoke up, "Easier said than done with those Aragami roaming around."

"According to Azumi's report, the Aragami moved towards this area," Haru pointed on the map, "so let's hope they stay there and no other Aragami show up anytime soon. We've been here a week without spotting Aragami, so it's possible that this was a wandering herd that happened to be passing by."

Shin reminded Haru, "Your daughter also reported about another group of people that could be a problem."

"Yes." Kouta bitterly remarked, "A problem she caused."

Shin looked towards Kouta with disbelief as he said, "She claimed she was acting in self-defense."

"Hmph." Kouta stated, "She's been giving that excuse a lot this past year."

"Even so, that doesn't mean she's lying." Shin defensively retorted.

"Lying or not she's becoming dangerous to the group." Kouta bluntly stated. "It's only a matter of time before she goes too far."

"Isn't that going a little far Kouta-san?" Tomoko calmly asked.

"I don't see how." Kouta retorted. "She had a lot of blood on her hands."

"Even so," Tomoko did her best to remain calm as she defended Azumi, "I'm sure Azumi-san was just doing what she could to protect her brother. She isn't the type of person who kills needlessly."

"…" Haru remained quiet as he listened to these two speak about his daughter in front of him as he bit his lip.

This did not go unnoticed by Shin who was surprised by Haru's inaction. "…?"

Kouta looked towards Haru as he said, "Sorry Haru. I know she's your daughter, but you can't ignore how many people she's killed. I'm sure even you're troubled by this."

"…" Haru remained silent.

Shin spoke up, "This is getting a little out of hand Kouta. We shouldn't be fighting amongst ourselves. Let's not forget that she's one of our best scouts, and we don't exactly have a lot of people willing to take on that job."

"Hmph." Kouta retorted, "I did my share."

"She does more than you." Shin fired back.

"Um …" Kouta was temporarily at a loss for words.

Wrinkles in Shin's forehead were becoming more visible with each word he spoke. "You have a lot of nerve to criticize her, especially since you didn't see what happened."

"Neither did you," Kouta fired at Shin and kept on shooting, "and what're you going to do? Give her a free pass? It's irresponsible to ignore all the people she's killed. The body count is a little too high for my taste."

Shin asked in a demanding tone, "So what're you going to do? Condemn her? You have no right to do that."

"Kouta-san does have a point." Wakana who had remained silent throughout the meeting finally interjected.

"Not you too." Shin replied.

Wakana did not acknowledge Shin's remark as she stated, "It was one thing when she did it the first or second time, but this is happening much more frequently. When people take measures like that, I can't help but wonder where it'll end."

"As you can see, I'm not the only one who thinks that." Kouta asked, "Does anyone share my …"

With every word that was spoken, Haru bit into his lip before raising his voice in agitation, "Enough!"

Haru's booming voice was enough to render the other people in the room silent as he spoke, "My daughter is not relevant to the problem at hand." Haru stated, "We need to figure out the best places we can get the necessary supplies to make it to Fenrir, and we're not going to do that by talking about Azumi. I will speak to her about what happened today myself. For now, let's get back to the plan. Is that understood?!"

"…" The group was stunned silent for a moment before replying, "Yes sir."

/

After the meeting was over, Shin and Haru were alone. Shin did not hesitate to tell his friend and leader, "Why didn't you say something sooner Haru? Azumi is your daughter. How could you just let Kouta say those things about her? You know Kouta hasn't exactly seen your daughter in a 'positive' light these past few months."

"Ah huff …" Haru took a breath before replying, "His points had some merit to them."

"So what?" Shin raised his voice in disbelief, "You're Azumi's father! You should be defending her! That's your job! I shouldn't be the one defending her! You should!"

"I wanted to know more about what he was thinking." Haru stated in a matter-of-fact tone, "His feelings on the matter aren't exactly exclusive to him. I'm sure you've seen it. There are more than a few people in this group that share that sentiment."

"Because you've been letting him spread his opinions around." Shin shot back. "If you're not defending your daughter, other people will see it and think whatever he says is fact."

"A man is entitled to his opinion." Haru replied.

"Even if that opinion is getting people to turn against your daughter?" Shin bitterly asked, "Even if that opinion is based on his own assumptions?"

"…" Haru had no reply.

"I'm aware that your daughter has killed a number of people over this past year or so. However, I never believed that she did it because she wanted to." Shin reminded Haru as he held out his hand, "All of us have blood on our hands Haru. All of us. We all know how unpleasant the feeling is. I highly doubt your daughter enjoys that feeling. She isn't that type of person."

Haru began to say, "I know she isn't …"

"Then why didn't you say that before?" Shin cut Haru off. "I shouldn't be the one telling you this." He remarked, "After being a leader so long, it seems like you've really lost track of what you're supposed to do as a father."

"…" Haru could feel his skin crawl at Shin's remark before he told his friend, "I will be speaking to her about what happened."

"Fine." Shin began to say, "I'd recommend against saying anything too harsh. She's your daughter and one of our best …"

"I don't need you to tell me how to speak to my own daughter." Haru sharply cut Shin off.

"Of course not." Shin began walking away from Haru. It was difficult to tell if Shin was being facetious or not as he left Haru alone.

/

During the meeting and after making sure Azumi was recovering under the doctor's care, Kaede spoke to her son. She knew he didn't exactly have an easy time of with their latest encounter either. She spoke in a concerned tone, "Are you okay Yu? Are you hurt?"

Yu shook his head, "No mom. I'm fine. Sis made sure of that."

Kaede asked, "What happened back there?"

Yu raised an eyebrow as he replied one question with another, "Didn't Sis tell you?"

"I need you to tell me." Kaede sternly told her son.

"Hmm … Well … um …" Yu was hesitant to tell his mother, but he ultimately told the story, "Those jerks held a knife to my throat, and Sis tried to get them to let me go. They wouldn't listen to her then things got out of hand."

Kaede's heart sunk upon hearing the story as she solemnly replied, "Leaving behind four dead bodies goes beyond things getting out of hand."

"Grh!" Yu gritted his teeth before lashing out, "What was Sis supposed to do?"

"…" Kaede was taken aback by her son's outburst.

Yu angrily defended his sister's actions. "She tried talking to them! It's not her fault they didn't listen! It's not her fault they're dead! They were bad people, and they got what they deserved!"

"Umm …" As usual Kaede was uneasy about the situation.

"You're not seriously upset with Sis are you?" Yu asked much to his dismay. "She doesn't deserve this crap! She saved my life!"

"No!" Kaede shook her head as she denied. "Of course not!"

Yu insisted, "She didn't do anything wrong. She had no choice."

"I understand …" Kaede stated, "I'm glad she was there to help you."

"She's done more than that." Yu stated, "I don't like the way people look at Sis sometimes."

"Excuse me?" Kaede was clearly confused by her son's statement.

"Don't tell me you haven't noticed!" Yu replied in disbelief, "More people have been looking at her funny lately!" Yu's teeth grinded against each other as he added, "Even father!"

"Huh?" Kaede was taken aback by her son's comments. She was not even sure if she could form an appropriate response to that.

"It's been happening more over the past few months." Yu explained further, "People look at Sis like she's one of those people who cause us trouble." Yu gritted his teeth as he stated, "It's not right. It's just not right."

"…" Kaede was at a loss for words. She had been oblivious to what her son was saying, and it wasn't the first time she had been ignorant of things.

"Do you really not notice how people in the camp treat Sis?" Yu exasperatedly stated.

"I understand she isn't popular amount some people, but it never seemed that bad to me." Kaede replied.

"It's getting worse mother. People are telling their kids to stay away from Sis like she's the plague or something. It feels like some of them are treating Sis like she's the enemy. Shin is pretty much the only member of the counsel that tries to defend Sis. It's like he's the only one to really acknowledge all the good Sis does. Not even father seemed to do that."

"You know your father cares about you." Kaede tried to reassure her son.

"He may have asked us how we were when we got back, but he didn't sound like how he would've over a year ago." Yu gritted his teeth as he bitterly remarked, "He doesn't sound like the father I knew."

"…" Kaede did not have much to say in response.

"I wouldn't want anything to happen, but it feels like not as many people appreciate Sis like they should. I feel like if that doesn't change, something will happen." Yu put his hand on his stomach as he said, "I can just feel it." Yu desperately said, "I don't want Sis to get in trouble for what happened today, but I know she will!"

"It …" Kaede attempted to assure her son, "It'll be fine Yu."

"How would you know?" Yu skeptically asked. "You didn't even know some of the stuff I told you until just now."

"Um ... Well if there is any trouble tell me about it. I'd want to know." Kaede told her son, "I need you to tell me."

"…" It took a moment before Yu reluctantly agreed, "Okay fine."

/

After speaking with his mother, he found Azumi in her makeshift room cleaning her knife. The moment Azumi noticed Yu walking through the door, she put her knife away and said, "Hey Yu. Feeling any better?"

"I should be the one asking you that." Yu protested.

"Ahem." Azumi cleared her throat as she placed her hand to massage it. She could feel that thanks to the tea the doctor had given her that it was on the mend. "I'll live."

"… Ah huff," Yu took a breath before nervously telling his sister, "I … I never actually thanked you for earlier. You saved my life again Sis. Thanks for saving me from that man … I mean I knew you would, but thanks. It always …" Yu began to trail off.

Hearing her brother give his 'awkward' gratitude put a smile on her face as she told him, "You don't have to thank me for that. Bailing little brothers out is what big sisters do."

"Sis …" Was the only word Yu could bring himself to say.

"Besides, you already paid me back. Remember?" Azumi motioned to the marks on her neck. "It would've been a lot worse."

"I was way too slow." Yu shamefully replied, "I took way too long to recover, and I should've tried stabbing him rather than trying to find a rock. I just didn't think …"

"You're only thirteen years old Yu." Azumi reminded her brother, "I've only been training you for about two years now. I'm not expecting you to get everything right. Hell. Not even I can get everything right."

"But Sis …" Yu attempted to protest.

"We both came out alive." Azumi sternly cut off her brother. "That's what's most important."

"…" Yu was not sure what he she should say next as he glanced towards the ground.

Azumi sighed as she walked up to her brother, leaned down, and grabbed Yu's chin with her fingers to move his head, so they could look at each other in the eyes. "Remember this Yu. Making sure that you, your family, and you're friends get out alive is your priority. Everything else is secondary. You got that?"

Yu glanced downward before replying, "Yes Sis."

Azumi stood up and grabbed Yu's chin again and made sure he would be looking in the eyes. "You got that?"

"Yes Sis. I do." Yu insisted.

Seeing the look in his eyes as he replied filled Azumi with satisfaction, but Azumi maintained her grip as she told her brother, "Remember. Always look me in the eye when you answer. You got that?"

Yu replied, "Yes Sis."

"Good." Azumi let go of his chin and smiled, "You seem to have something else on your mind." Azumi was as insightful as usual. Her brother had a hard time keeping anything from her. "Is there anything else you'd like to talk about?" It was a very inviting smile she presented herself. From the way she was smiling, it was difficult to imagine she had killed people who attempted to harm her and her brother mere hours ago.

"Well …" Yu asked, "If you don't mind me asking, why didn't you use your gun on the other three?"

Azumi crossed her arms as she dryly pointed out. "You mean besides worrying if too many gunshots would attract Aragami?"

"Well … um … yes." Yu awkwardly responded. "You had enough bullets didn't you?"

"I did, but that wasn't the point." Azumi sighed as she scratched the back of her head. She explained, "You have to remember you need to conserve supplies for the most crucial moments. It's not like we have an unlimited number of bullets and making bullets isn't exactly easy. Even with the metal I get."

"…" Yu did not have a response to that.

"That guy having a knife to your throat was a crucial moment." Azumi firmly held her position on the issue. "That's why I used it when I was sure he wasn't going to let you go. Despite the noise and the limited supplies, I needed to take that shot. After he went down, I was sure I didn't need it for the rest. That's why I put it away."

"I … I see." Yu replied.

"Always remember Yu. Conserve your supplies for when you really need them. It can save your life," Azumi grinned as she added, "or maybe mine."

"Heh." Yu laughed, "Yeah. Maybe."

"So now that this lesson is over, you feeling hunger?" Azumi remained grinning, "I don't know about you, but I'm starved."

On cue, Yu could hear his stomach growling which caused a light blush to form on his cheeks as he scratched the back of his head, "Yeah. I'm feeling pretty hungry."

"Come on." Azumi motioned for Yu to follow. "Let's go get something to eat."

As Yu walked alongside his sister he grimaced at what dinner could be, "I hope it's something good this time."

"Hmph." Azumi casually remarked, "It's probably spiders again."

"Eww!" Yu shook at the thought.

"Well," Azumi patted her brother on the back, "beggars can't be choosers. Let's make the most of it. Right?"

"Yeah … Yeah." Yu replied with a shrug.

/

After collecting their rations, Azumi and Yu walked among the groups of people who gathered to eat. The duo saw at least one or two narrowed their eyes and stared daggers at her. An unsettling sight, but not one Azumi and Yu hadn't already grown accustomed to over the past year, and Yu wasn't even the recipient.

"Azumi! Yu!" A female who was sitting beside several other group members was calling and waving to the brother and sister, "Over here!" The person who was eagerly calling out to them was none other than Yashiko. She was the one eagerly calling which was not surprising.

Despite the looks others gave Azumi, the duo knew they could at least count on this group. The group was composed of one of the mechanics, Hanasaki Minato, one of the cooks, Inoue Yashiko, and one of the children who were around Yu's age, Kato Taro.

The three of them had been friends with Azumi and Yu for years. Azumi had known all of them since they were little. Minato and Yashiko were both only a few years older than her brother while Taro was roughly the same age. Due to their young age, none of them had memories of the world that came before. They could only rely on the memories of others to even imagine what it was like. Even with those accounts, it was difficult for any of them to grasp what that world was, especially after years of hiding and surviving.

As they sat by the table, Azumi greeted them, "Hey guys!"

"Hey." Everyone replied. Azumi and Yu sat next to Taro on one side while Minato and Yashiko sat on the other.

After Azumi sat down, Yashiko jumped right to it. "Is your throat doing any better?"

"Ahem." Azumi cleared her throat again before replying, "Yeah it'll be fine."

"Does it hurt to talk?" Yashiko asked in concern.

"Not really just … 'Ahem,'" Azumi cleared her throat again before continuing her reassurance, "… Just if I raise it. Luckily it's not a good idea to raise your voice anyway. Heh. 'Ahem.'"

Yashiko chuckled, "Yeah … Right."

/

While Azumi was conversing with Yashiko, Taro nudged Yu and asked, "Is it true you were held hostage Yu?"

"Yeah …" Yu scratched the back of his head in embarrassment, "I was."

"Heh." Taro chuckled as he commented, "Again? How did that happen?" 

"They took me by surprise," Yu hastily defended himself, "but I wasn't worried." Yu tried to keep a grin on his face as he told Taro, "I knew Sis would be able to bail me out. Just like she always does."

"That's Azumi-san for you." Taro glanced at Azumi who was in the middle of conversing with the other two. His eyes remained fixed on her as he appeared to be dreamily stating, "You can always count on her."

The look did not go unnoticed by Yu who loudly cleared his throat, "Ahem! Yes I know." Yu confidently stated with a grin, "No one can beat her." Yu added, "Not fairly."

"Hmm …" Taro looked around Yu again before replying, "I hope you're right about that. She's the best we got."

"I wished everyone agreed with that." Even though Yu stated that out loud, Azumi and Yashiko were not paying attention to Yu's comment because they were focused on their own conversation.

"Enough do." Taro specified, "The people sitting here do." Taro then started to act nervously as he asked, "Anyway, this group you and Azumi-san fought off. Do you think they'll be a problem again?"

"Not sure, but Sis told me that we shouldn't let our guard down, so I'm going to take her advice." Yu stated.

Taro nodded, "Good idea."

Yu then turned to Minato who had mostly remained quiet during the dinner, "So Minato can you do something with those parts Sis and I got for you?"

Minato broke his silence and replied, "Haven't thought of anything yet, but give me a little time, and I might think of something."

"Like another weapon?" Yu eagerly asked.

"Maybe." Minato shrugged, "We can never have too many right?"

Yu replied, "I don't think so."

"In that case, we should think of what to make." Minato was able to get Azumi and Yashiko's attention as he asked, "If I did make it another weapon, would you want another knife? I've been making a lot of those lately."

"Hmm …" Azumi tried to consider the options before answering, "Knives are more maneuverable and easy to carry, but they don't have much of a reach and we could use more variety …. Could a spear be possible?"

"A spear huh?" Minato considered the possibility with interest, "Hmm … Maybe. I might have enough for it, but it might be a stretch."

Azumi stated, "In that case, the next time Yu and I go out, we'll try getting you some more stuff to work with."

Minato raised an eyebrow as he asked, "How long before you can go out again?"

Azumi grinned as she declared, "You know as well as I do that something like this isn't going to keep me down long."

Minato nodded, "True."

As they continued to eat, Yu made sure to sarcastically remark, "Mmm … This food really is appetizing would you say?"

Yashiko remarked, "Well there isn't a whole lot to catch out there but this is better than nothing."

Yu replied, "Yeah I know."

"Well …" Minato stated, "Here's hoping Fenrir will be more appetizing."

"Yeah." Yu unenthusiastically stated, "Here's hoping."

/

As Azumi and Yu ate dinner, they saw their father approach them which nearly caused Azumi's stomach get tied up in a knot. Luckily, she did not have to talk to him much earlier because she excused herself to see the doctor after giving him her report of the area. However, she could see there was no avoiding him this time.

"Azumi." Her father asked, "Is your throat feeling better?"

"A little." Azumi answered.

"Good. I want to talk to you after dinner," Haru added, "in private."

"… Ah huff …" Azumi took a breath before replying, "I'll be there." Her father nodded in response and walked away. When he was out of earshot, Azumi let out a sigh. "… Great."

Yu, who had been uncomfortably watching the brief 'chat' between his sister and father could tell that something was not right. "So you really are in trouble with father because you saved me from those men?"

"Hmm." Azumi grimaced as she replied, "Trouble is a mild word to use."

Even though Yu knew it was coming, he voiced his displeasure, "That's not fair! What happened was my fault! I should be in trouble not you!"

Azumi grabbed her brother's shoulder to ensure she had his undivided attention. "It wasn't your fault." Azumi firmly told her brother.

"I still played a role." Yu told his sister, "Let me come with you when you go see father. I want to help."

"No." Azumi shook her head, "You don't need to come."

"But I want to." Yu looked his sister in the eyes as he insisted.

"This is between father and me." Azumi firmly held onto her position, "I really appreciate that you want to help me. I really do. But this might be something I'm better off handling alone. It'll be much easier."

"But Sis …" Yu weakly attempted to protest.

"Please do what I say Yu." Azumi almost sounded as if she was pleading with her brother as she repeated, "Please."

As reluctant as Yu was, he could not turn down her request. "… Okay."

/

After Azumi was finished eating, she met her father in their camp's temporary meeting room. Azumi made sure to check to see if anyone was attempting to listen in before closing the door. She was hoping that this would be as private as possible. Her father's back was turned to her as he was looking over some plans. The two of them were standing on opposite sides of the table when they began talking.

"Hello father." Azumi greeted. "I guess we have a lot to talk about."

Haru turned towards his daughter and looked her in the eyes as he sternly asked, "What exactly happened out there?"

"Ahem." Azumi cleared her throat. "You mean besides getting some more supplies for the group?" Azumi dryly remarked with a rhetorical question.

For a moment, wrinkles in Haru's forehead were becoming visible before he took a breath and replied, "Yes."

"It's as I told you in my report." Azumi restated, "Yu and I were attacked by some other scavengers, and I killed them."

"I gathered that, but I want you to give me the details." Haru emphasized, "Very specific details."

"Okay." Azumi gave him a full account. "While I was looking for supplies, a group of scavengers took Yu by surprise and held him hostage. We had a standoff. I tried getting them let go of Yu. I even made it clear I would shoot if they didn't let him go and walk away. When that didn't work, I killed them." Azumi firmly concluded, "And that's what happened."

"How did you try to negotiate with them exactly?" Haru leaned on the table with his arms as he asked.

"I wouldn't exactly call it a negotiation …" Azumi trailed off before clarifying, "I did try reasoning with them."

"By pointing a gun at them?" Haru had his arms crossed as he inquired.

"I had to be ready." Azumi replied defensively, "You used to be a cop. I'm sure you used to have plenty of situations that involved you pulling out your weapon."

Haru's expression remained unchanged. "True, but some of your behavior has been a bit of a concern recently Azumi."

"…" Azumi remained silent as she lightly bit on her lip.

Haru bluntly stated, "There have been times when you seem a little too trigger happy."

"I'm hardly trigger happy father." Azumi had both hands on the table and her fingers began scratching the surface.

"You've used up more bullets than anyone else who has been trained to use a gun." Haru pointed out. "That has raised more than a few eyebrows."

"I only pulled it when I need to." Azumi looked her father in the eyes as she told him, "I've had to pull it quite a bit recently."

Haru asked, "Did you need to this time?"

"I did." Despite the fire burning with Azumi's stomach, she did her best to keep a lid on it as she continued to lightly scratch the table with her fingers. "I tried reasoning that he didn't have anything worth stealing which was pretty much true besides the gun and maybe the knives, but they thought I didn't have bullets." Azumi bitterly remarked, "That was their mistake."

"…" Her father was not the least bit amused by that, but his daughter never broke eye contact with him. He decided to remain quiet and let her finish.

"When that didn't work, I gave them a very, 'very' stern warning to let Yu go if they didn't want to die." Azumi emphasized her point. "They laughed and I'm sure you can guess what happened next."

"Yes I can." Haru dryly added, "Unfortunately."

"…" Azumi stepped back from the table. It was a response Azumi expected by now.

"I understand you reasoning and warning them, but you didn't try negotiating with them to end that peacefully?" Haru dug deeper.

"What'd you expect me to do?" A bit of the fire was beginning to flame up as Azumi spoke and her fingers curled up into fists. "Roll over and give them everything we had? Because that's what they wanted."

Haru shook his head, "No, but you could've tired less violent means."

"You weren't there father!" Azumi angrily defended her actions. It took quite a bit of restraint on Azumi's part to stop herself from banging her fist onto the table. "These people held Yu hostage with a knife to his throat! Your **son**! My **little brother**!" Azumi fiercely pointed out, "These people weren't looking for a peaceful solution! The only solution they wanted was for me to give them everything we had, and even then I doubt they would've let Yu go!"

"Look at our group Azumi." Haru was not backing down from his stance so easily. "Do you think all of them became part of this with smiles and handshakes?"

Azumi already knew the answer to that question. "No."

"Of course not. You saw it for yourself." Haru reminded his daughter, "We had some tense confrontations with some of these people before we negotiated, settled our differences, and came to a truce. You could have …"

"None of them involved taking hostages!" Azumi shot back.

Haru was less than pleased at being interrupted. "Excuse me, but I …"

"No father!" Azumi abruptly cut her father off again. "You need to listen!" Azumi pointed at the door, "All those people in our group! How many of them took one of us hostage before they negotiated with you?!"

"…" Her father was stunned to silence with that question.

At her father's silence, Azumi fired with another question, "How many of them tried holding a knife to your son's throat?"

"…" There was no response her father to give.

Azumi impatiently egged her father on. "Well? Tell me! How many?"

"None." Haru reluctantly answered.

"That's right! None!" Azumi was not finished yet. "If any of them pulled that crap, would you have been so willing to welcome them into the fold?"

"…" Her father was hesitant to answer, but his silence was the only answer Azumi needed.

"I didn't think so." Azumi replied with narrowed eyes of her own.

"Hmm …" Despite the lashing he received from his daughter, he was not about to change his feelings on the matter.

Azumi could see that no progress was being made. "Ah huff … Ahem!" Azumi took a deep breath to calm the fire and put her hand on her throat before telling him, "Look I get it. You used to be a cop. You'd rather have peaceful solutions. I respect that. I really, 'really' do. If things had been different, I might've wanted to be one to, but they're not."

"…" Haru remained quiet as his daughter spoke.

Azumi continued, "Things have been like that since before Yu was born. I've seen it." Azumi made sure to add, "You've seen it. Every year people are becoming crazier and crazier. There's a reason why most of the people in our group are people we met in the first few years. Not everyone became bat shit crazy yet."

"Hmph." Her father commented, "As much as I hate to say it, depending on who you ask some people would say that's what you have become."

"…" Azumi glanced downward. As far as Azumi was concerned, it wasn't a revelation to her as much as a confirmation. Even though that was something Azumi expected to hear, she bit her lip upon hearing it. She looked at her father again and said, "They can think what they want. Not everyone thinks that."

"Enough to have me worried." Haru stated, "It seems like half the camp looks up to you while the other half would want to kick you out."

"You know they would never actually suggest that as long as I'm your daughter." Azumi had her arms crossed.

"It won't matter if they think you're a threat to their survival." Haru voiced his concern. "More and more people have brought their concerns to my attention."

"I'm the reason why some of them are still breathing." Azumi held out her thumb and pointed to herself as she defensively stated.

"That's not how they see it." Haru stated.

"Then those people are a bunch of ungrateful assholes." Azumi bitterly remarked. She nearly felt like spitting upon them.

"Even so, you should understand that things done with the best intentions might not always seem like that to others." Haru warned, "If you're not careful, something you do might backfire."

Azumi with her arms crossed looked her father in the eyes as she impatiently asked, "Are we done here?"

"…" Haru remained silent for a moment as he looked at his daughter. "Yes. We're done." Haru added, "For now."

/

As Azumi walked away from her father's room, she heard someone call out to her from behind, "So … Did your old man let you have it?" The voice belonged to none other than Yashiko.

Azumi turned around and answered, "He got as much from me and then some in return."

"Hah." Yashiko chuckled, "Figures. That's so like you Azumi."

Azumi grinned as she told her friend, "Wouldn't have it any other way."

As the two of them walked down the hallway, her friend asked, "Is it true you fought off and killed four bandits?"

"Didn't have much of a choice." Azumi didn't feel the need to be defensive as she casually remarked, "It's like you heard before. They were holding my brother hostage, and they weren't listening to reason." Azumi glanced at her friend as they continued to walk, "You … You don't have a problem with that right?" There was a hint of nervousness in Azumi's voice.

"No way!" Her friend shook her head without hesitation. "In fact, I think you're amazing. It's pretty awesome you were able to pull that off." Azumi bit her lip as she heard her friend speak, "I know I couldn't."

"Hmm …" Azumi took a moment before replying, I could help toughen you up like I've been doing with Yu." Azumi punched her fist into her open hand as she grinned. "You never know. It might do you wonders."

"Hehe." Yashiko nervously laughed. "I'm not so sure I'm cut out for that."

"Suit yourself, but Aragami and bandits won't care." Azumi bluntly stated, "They'll kill you whether you can or not."

Yashiko uneasily asked, "You really like to be blunt don't you?"

Azumi shrugged her shoulders. "When haven't I?"

"…" Yashiko was silent for a moment before replying, "Point taken."

"Don't forget Yashiko." Azumi recited the words, "What's past is prologue."

Yashiko raised an eyebrow at that last part. "Excuse me?"

"I said 'What's past is prologue.'" Azumi repeated.

Yashiko asked, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"It's a saying my father said a few times." Azumi explained, "It means how everything in the past is prologue for the now and the future since everything that happened before led us to now."

"Oh." Yashiko nodded her head. "That makes sense."

"My brother and I go by those words." Azumi told her friend, "We can't change the past. That's obvious wouldn't you say?"

"Well … yeah." Yashiko hesitantly replied.

"But we can change our future." Azumi told her friend, "We've done what we can to survive the past, and we continue to do so. That way we'll be able to do something down the line."

"You mean like become 'God Eaters'?" Yashiko asked.

"…" Azumi did not immediately give an answer. "… Maybe. At the very least, we're doing everything we can to stop the Aragami from getting another meal and keeping ourselves alive." Azumi added, "Being able to see another day is what Yu and I aim for."

"How would that saying apply to me?" Yashiko pointed to herself.

Azumi answered, "In your case, you've always been afraid of doing anything out there and you've relied on others."

"I've done things for the group." Yashiko defensively replied.

"Yes, but I know you want to do more." Azumi stated, "With me by your side, now will be your chance to do something more than chores. You might be able to really make a difference if you can take care of yourself."

"You really think so?" Yashiko asked.

"I know so. Trust me. You're always welcome to join my next scouting party." Azumi offered. "I could use more people besides Yu to count on. If you want more training, I'd be happy to oblige with that too."

"Hmm …" Yashiko replied, "I'll think about."

"You really should come to the next one." Azumi stated, "It won't be for a couple of days. Doc's orders and all."

"Um … I don't think so." Yashiko quickly added, "Besides, you and I both know you won't stay sidelined for long."

"Yeah I know. Anyway, just think about it." Azumi grinned as she held out her thumb and pointed at her chest. "If there's anyone you're safe with, it's me."

Yashiko grinned at that thought, "I'm sure that's true."

/

Shortly after Azumi left the temporary meeting room, someone else entered the room. Haru could hear the door behind him. "I thought you wanted to …" Haru began talking as he turned around only to see that it was not Azumi standing on the other side of the table, but his son Yu. "… done." Haru awkwardly finished that sentence.

Unlike his sister, Yu displayed his dissatisfaction point blank with narrow eyebrows and wrinkles along his own forehead. The first words out of his mouth were, "Why are you always being so hard on Sis?!"

"Yu?" Haru was taken aback by his son's sudden offensive.

"Sis didn't do anything wrong." Yu continued to shoot his comments his father's way. "She saved my life again. Shouldn't that matter?"

"Of …" Haru felt like he was unbalanced as he replied, "Of course it matters."

"Then why are you and so many other people so hard on her? Why are you against her?" Yu demanded, "I might be a kid, but I'm not stupid! I've seen how you look at her!" Yu gritted his teeth as he let his father have it, "You're cold! It's like you think she's the enemy!"

"That's …" Haru tried to reassure his son, "That's not what I think of her at all. I'm worried about her."

"It doesn't look like it!" Yu shot back.

"I'm her father!" Unlike when he was speaking with his daughter, Haru was on the defensive as he spoke, "I'm worried! I'm worried about you too! I'm worried every single time you two go on a scouting and scavenging mission! I'm always worried something might happen! I'm worried something might happen to the group and you two will have nothing to go back to! I have a lot to be worried about, and it gets worse every day!"

"…" Yu was silent for a moment before asking, "Did you tell Sis that?"

"Um … Of course I …" Haru trailed off.

"Really? Because it doesn't sound like you did!" Yu shot back.

"…" Haru knew that his son hit the nail on the head.

"Sis does what she can to help keep us alive!" Yu stated, "You can't fault her for that!"

"If we let this world control who we become, we might never come back." Haru stated.

"What does that mean?" Before Haru could reply, Yu shot several more question, "Let the world control us? What are you talking about? Aren't we supposed to be surviving? Shouldn't staying alive be more important?"

"But at what cost?" Haru asked, "How many other people would die who didn't have to?"

"I don't know, but how many people would be alive any other way?" Yu quickly asked, "Is it really so wrong that Sis killed those men?" As Haru was about to say something, Yu quickly cut him off, "I was there! I saw what kind of men they were! You didn't! They weren't good people! If Sis wasn't there, I thought they might kill me! Doesn't that matter?"

"…" Haru once again had difficulty coming up with a response.

 **Bang!**

Yu slammed his hand on the table which caught his father by surprise as Yu raised his voice while recounting the story, "As soon as they saw me, one of them tackled me to the ground and held a knife to my throat, so I wouldn't try to get away! The same way one of them tackled Sis to the ground and tried to strangle her to death!" There was no containing the fire in his stomach as he spoke. "You saw those marks on her neck didn't you?!"

"… Yes I did." Haru hesitantly replied.

"The only reason they didn't do that from the start was because she had a gun. Two of them looked like the crap was scared out of them." Yu remarked, "They probably would've done worse to her if she didn't do anything." Yu bitterly stated, "Those four were scum. We're better off without them around."

 **Lad-dub! Lad-dub! Lad-dub! Lad-dub! Lad-dub!**

Haru could feel his heart beating faster upon hearing that last statement his son said which caused him to shoot back, "That's exactly what I'm worried about."

"Why?" Yu was genuinely confused as he asked, "Didn't you say that was your job?"

Haru was taken aback by that question. "What was that?"

"You told me before there were Aragami you took down people called 'criminals.' That means they were bad guys like the ones Sis took care of." Yu asked, "So why is there a problem?"

"Okay!" Haru held out his hand as he told his son, "First of all, you're completely on the wrong track!"

"Wha …" Yu began to say.

Haru clarified, "I was a police officer! I did my best to keep the peace!"

"By taking care of scum right?" Yu asked.

"Not the way you're thinking!" Haru sharply told his son, "I captured and arrested criminals! Using deadly force was rare!" Haru emphasized, "Very rare! We would then put them through a process!"

"And what is this process?" Yu pointed out, "It doesn't sound like anyone's using it."

"This process …" Haru attempted to explain, "The process was part of the laws are what helped make human society what it was."

"When was that?" Yu pointedly asked, "Before I was born?"

"Yes." Haru answered.

"What the hell are they?" Yu demanded to know. "What are these laws?"

"They're like the rules we have for our group." Haru attempted to explain. "Just we applied them to a lot more people."

"And these laws included not harming other people right?" Yu asked.

"Of course." Haru replied.

"Then it sounds like everyone besides us are breaking these laws all the time." Yu dryly stated. "What good are they if no one else follows them?"

"…" Haru took a moment before replying, "I'll admit that things are bad now, but they won't always be. These laws are important not to forget if we ever want to rebuild. If we're ever going to make life better again before we become something else, we need to remember them."

"No one out there seems to care about those rules." Yu held out his arms as he angrily asked, "When we're taking care of scum, why should we care about the rules then? Do you think we'll harm the people in our own camp too?"

"…" Haru was hesitant to grimly reply, "That's exactly what I'm afraid of most."

"Huh?" Yu was caught off guard. "What …?"

"I'm not necessarily afraid of you harming people in the camp." Haru clarified his point. "What I'm really afraid of is what this world will turn you into and how far you can go."

"What do you mean?" Yu asked with wrinkles forming on his forehead.

"I'm saying if you keep going like this where will it end?" Haru asked in a somber voice.

"What?" Yu's confusion was not cured by this answer.

"How about this?" Haru attempted to give an example. "Let's say you're right that Azumi made the right call in killing those survivors …"

"She did make the right call!" Yu bluntly insisted.

"…" Haru lightly bit his lip. Despite his annoyance at being interrupted again, Haru continued his point, "Even so, she's been making that call more than a few times recently. More times than people are comfortable with."

"I know." Yu maintained his position. "They were also bad people."

Haru asked, "What if she was wrong about any of them? What about then?"

Yu shook his head. "I don't think she was."

"What if she's wrong about someone she meets in the future?" Haru asked his son, "What would happen then?"

Yu did not answer that question. Instead, he said, "Sis has been right about a lot of things. I trust her." Yu piercingly asked, "Do you?"

"…" Haru was hesitant to reply, "… I do."

That hesitation did not go unnoticed by Yu as he turned to walk away. Before Yu left the room, Yu glanced towards his father and told him, "Just so you know father. If Azumi gets kicked out of this group, I'm going with her."

"What?" Haru was surprised to hear Yu say that.

Yu replied in a matter of fact tone, "She knows what she's doing and she's taught me what I need to know. If she's kicked out, I'm kicked out."

"She's not going to be kicked out." Haru tried to sound reassuring.

"I hope you're right about that because the looks I saw tell me a different story." Yu then made his exit leaving his father with food for thought. He did not even attempt to stop his son from walking away.

/

While Yu was having his 'conversation' with his father, Azumi was taking care of a task of her own. After separating from Yashiko, Azumi entered into an area that her group was using as a temporary garage. In this garage, Azumi and Yu's group were keeping their transportation trucks along with a few motorcycles. Azumi was not surprised to see Minato hunched over hard at work. In fact, she was counting on it.

Minato was not only their main mechanic, but he was also good at handling and forging weapons. He learned everything he knew form his father. Minato's father was not only a skilled mechanic himself, but he ran a side business before the world came to an end that involved weapons due to his interest in history. Minato more or less inherited his father's abilities, but he lacked a great deal of his father's background.

As Azumi saw Minato tinkering with the machines, she spoke up to catch her friend's attention.

"Hey."

Minato looked over his shoulder with goggles covering his eyes to see who it was. "Oh. Hey Azumi." Minato stood up and took off his goggles as he looked in Azumi's direction. "How'd your little 'chat' go?"

Azumi shrugged her shoulders. "About as well as you could expect."

"That bad huh?" Minato causally remarked.

"We're not here to talk about that." Azumi cut to the chase. "How're the repairs on the motorcycles coming along?"

"Progress is slow, but they're coming along okay." Minato reported.

"That's good news I guess." Azumi had her hand on her hips as she gazed upon the lineup.

Minato defensively replied, "I don't exactly have a lot to work with you know."

Azumi shook her head. "I'm not saying anything like that. I just want to make sure Plan B is ready for when things go south."

"Hmm …" Minato answered, "I'm doing the best I can, but they should be ready within a couple of days."

"Glad to hear it." Azumi replied, "Keep up the good work."

"You do understand that even with the motorcycles we found there won't be enough for everyone." Minato reminded his friend.

"I know." Azumi replied, "No one knows that better than me, but they could be useful as a distraction."

"You don't mean …" Minato began to say.

"Of course." Azumi cut him off, "Whoever's riding them could try leading the Aragami away from the main group."

Minato grimaced at the thought, "That sounds pretty risky."

"Since when is something not risky?" Azumi pointed out.

"Um …" Minato had no answer to that.

"Besides, 'risky' is putting it mildly." Azumi clarified, "I'd prefer saying its 'suicidally dangerous.'"

"Wow …" Minato dryly replied with an uneasy tone, "You really like to put things bluntly."

"No other way." Azumi walked over and knelt by one of the motorcycles as she checked out the wheels. "Acting as bait is suicide unless you're fast enough or have a plan. In this case it'll all depend on whether these things can outrun an Aragami. Do you think these things can?"

"Well … These things can go pretty fast." Minato knelt next to Azumi as he replied, "Faster than our trucks anyway, but I haven't exactly seen that many Aragami run, so I wouldn't know."

"Hmm …" Azumi touched the tire.

Minato added, "I guess it'd have to depending on the Aragami I guess."

"The most likely one we'd have to worry about would be the orgetails." Azumi replied glanced to her side as she asked, "Do you think these things can outrun them?"

"You've managed to escape from them on foot haven't you?" Minato asked, "Getting away from them on a motorcycle shouldn't be a problem right?"

"Only because I was able to outrun someone else slower than me." Both Azumi and Minato grimaced at that thought before she continued, "When it wasn't that, it was because I was able to find a building to take cover and lose them. If it weren't for that, I'd be dead by now."

"…" Minato had nothing to say to that.

Azumi explained, "If I'm driving that thing, I'll be out in the open with something that makes a lot of sound and nowhere to hide. The best bet would be to outrun it and hope it loses interest." Azumi made sure to grimly add, "That's assuming I don't run out of gas."

"No need to worry about that Azumi." Minato assured his friend. "I took the liberty of making sure all of them are filled to the top."

Azumi smiled. "I knew I could count on you."

"To be honest," Minato stood up as he walked over to his workstation, "I'd be more worried about the terrain. This wasteland hasn't exactly been friendly to us."

"Hmph." Azumi stood up as well. "That'd also be putting it mildly."

"What should we do if it gets in the way of your escape?" Minato grimly asked.

"… Don't be too worried about it." Azumi replied. "You've seen me drive this before right?"

"True, but still …" Minato was hesitant to say the next part, "All it takes is just one …" Minato could not bring himself to finish.

Azumi glanced down before looking up. "I already know that. Just let me worry about that. As long as I've got gas and I'm fast enough, I'll get away. You can count on that." It was hard to tell if she was assuring him or herself.

"… Okay." Despite that word, Minato did not sound overly convinced.

"By the way," Minato decided to change the topic, "how much more metal do you think you'd need for that spear?"

Minato decided to go with the flow as he replied, "Not much. I might even be able to make do with the metal you gave me."

"Don't do that." Azumi immediately responded, "I wouldn't want the tip to be too thin that it could break."

"Right …" Minato nodded, "Of course."

"Sorry if I'm putting too much on your plate." Azumi apologized. "I know you have a lot of work to …"

"No! No! No!" Minato repeatedly said before continuing, "It's fine. Really! You do so much for us, and you put your life on the line almost every day. I know today was pretty tough for you. Besides, while you're out there, I'm hanging back here where it's … well 'relatively safer.' I mean the lookouts haven't really spotted any Aragami near here, but if things went south I'd be able to hitch a ride on one of these babies here." Minato patted the closest motorcycle. "So … I mean … um … if anyone has the right to ask a favor from me it's you."

"Well I greatly appreciate that." Azumi stated, "In that case, you can probably expect more metal the day after tomorrow."

"Okay. I'll keep that in mind." Minato suddenly realized, "Wait a minute. You sure you'll be up for that in two days?"

"We'll find out." Azumi then asked, "Anyway, you want any help with this? I may not know much about this kind of stuff, but I'm not totally useless."

"No I'm good." Minato shook his head, "Stay focused on recovering so you can get me more metal."

"All right then. See ya." Azumi began walking way.

"Later." Minato then got back to work.

/

 **Location: Japan**

 **Date: June 28, 2068 – Night**

After their various tasks had come to a come to an end, it was time for another day to come to an end. Before turning in for the night, Azumi and Yu had one more thing to talk about. The two of them were alone with no one else to listen in. The only ones still awake besides them were out taking care of lookout duty. The two sat next to each other as they contemplated what happened that day.

"Sis …" Yu asked in concern, "Why do you want people to think you're the one who killed them all. I killed one of them, and I helped you kill another one too. So why?"

"Yu …" Azumi softly said.

Yu finished his point. "I mean you do that every time we get in a situation like that. Why do you do that? Why do you want all the burden? Wouldn't it be easier for you if everyone else knows I killed some of them too?"

"Ah huff …" Azumi took a breath before answering, "When people know you've killed someone and are willing to kill, they'll look at you differently. You've seen it for yourself right?"

"…" Yu remained silent at his sister's question.

Azumi stated, "You don't need them to do that to you yet."

"Then why have you allowed me to kill people?" Yu seemed more confused than before.

Azumi replied without hesitation. "It's not because I wanted you too. It's because you always have to be ready to do what you need to do. That's the only way to survive."

"…" Yu had no idea how to reply.

"When you're in a situation where another person tries to kill you, you can't just be merciful even if you want to." Azumi bit her lip again before finishing, "Otherwise, someone will take advantage of your mercy."

"Did …" Yu hesitantly asked his sister, "Did that happen to you?"

"Oh yeah." Azumi pointed to the long scar on her right cheek. "Remember when I got this beauty?"

"Yes …" Yu bitterly recalled the memory. "You lost a lot of blood."

The memory of that day had been burned into Azumi's head as she recalled what transpired. "I beat down a bandit like the ones who held you hostage. He wouldn't listen to reason or threats, so we fought. He even tried to stab me, but I still won." Azumi curled her fingers into fist as she bitterly concluded, "After I beat him, he begged for mercy. I gave it to him, and he repaid me with this." Azumi motioned to her scar again.

"… Good lord." Those were the only words Yu could say in response.

"If I didn't kill him, he would've chopped my head off." Azumi reflexively touched her neck as she recalled that memory. "He was the first man I killed, and I'll never forget that day. It's not like I ever could if I wanted to."

"… Right." Yu hesitantly replied.

Azumi looked Yu right in the eyes as she sternly told her brother, "I don't want you to make the same mistake I did. In this world, when reason or threats don't work, there is no room for mercy." She patted his shoulder as she asked her trademark question, "You got me?"

Yu nodded, "I understand Sis."

Azumi smiled as she told her brother, "Okay then." She then put her hand and playfully ruffled up his hair. "Heh. Heh."

"Hey!" Yu protested as he moved Azumi's hand away.

"Heh." Azumi chuckled as she stood up. "Good night Yu."

"Good night." Yu then went to sleep as Azumi moved to her makeshift bed. They had survived another day, and they hoped there were would be days they could live to see.

/

 **Author Notes** : I would like to take a moment to thank **Fokshee** for the cover she produced for "Past is Prologue" along with the character designs that **s0ulafein** produced. As you can guess, the two characters are Azumi and Yu in the middle of an exploration/scavenging mission. I think the artwork captures the tone and the feeling of the characters beautifully. I look forward to future artwork they will produce for me. What are your thoughts?

While this chapter did not contain much action, it did contain a scene with other survivors needing to avoid the Aragami. As this chapter demonstrates, it is not something that can be done easily, and they need to be careful. If they attract Aragami's attention, it would be game over for them.

For this chapter, I decided that I wanted to delve deeper into the morality of Azumi's actions in the first chapter. This isn't the first time she has been confronted with a situation like that, and she has done her best to learn from her experiences. As a result, that has led to some less than peaceful solutions, but it might have prevented her from receiving more scars or someone else dying. Unfortunately, it is very hard to determine what kind of people you are dealing with in these situations, and she had to make a judgment call. Seeing them holding her brother hostage and not listening to her gave her enough reason to use lethal methods. However, her father used to be a police officer, and he would rather not let how brutal the world became dictate what kind of people they become. Otherwise, it could change them into people they didn't want to become.

Given the circumstances, I don't think it is debatable about whether or not Azumi was right in killing those individuals. While killing is generally wrong, it was a gray area since she was doing it in self-defense and saving her brother's life. However, the fact that similar situations have occurred has caused more than a few people to question whether or not Azumi is a danger. This is a case of 'Reality Ensues' since sometimes doing the right thing can still have unfortunate consequences. In this case, the group is divided in regards to their opinion of Azumi.

When I was writing this story, I decided to have the explanation that Azumi obtained a gun from her father because he was a police officer. I also decided that it would make sense that someone who is a police officer wouldn't want to let go of his morals. You can think of him as being a version of Rick Grimes who refused to fully adapt to the new world. The fact the Aragami ate a large part of humanity might have contributed to this situation.

While in this case, it has been about a decade and a half, but I could picture certain people stubbornly holding onto the morality of the old world. We've seen that happen even in other shows like 'The Walking Dead' depending on the circumstances. Over that time, Haru has done a few things, such as killing people, but he was far less in committing actions like that than either Azumi or Yu are. Azumi has used a lot more bullets than anyone else has.

There is also the fact that this world takes place in Japan is another factor. Perspectives of similar incidents differ greatly between the East and West. For example, in Sword Art Online, there is a character named Sinon who saved numerous people in a bank from a robber by managing to obtain his weapon in a struggle and shooting them with it. Sinon is treated as a pariah by numerous other people which would be something that could happen in real life. As a result, people with that mindset or maintained that mindset, would treat Azumi in a similar matter due to her high body count.

As you can see, most of the people who are clearly on Azumi's side are the people who were born after the Aragami Apocalypse began while most of the people who hold a more negative view of her were born prior to. That was intentional on my part to further showcase the differences in thinking patterns between the generations. However, not all of the people in the earlier generation share the same opinion as indicated by Shin's responses.

The fact that Azumi has killed numerous other people should not be surprising. Since she did not hesitate to kill those individuals and did not appear to be affected by it, they were clear signs that Azumi had done something like that multiple times before. Azumi's scars are also a clear foreshadowing of how battle hardened she has become. I even used those words to describe her appearance in the first chapter.

Haru is capable of being a capable leader as shown when he was leading his team to safety when they were attempting to avoid the Aragami. However, he clearly is not the best father. Over the course of the apocalypse, you could say that he focused more on being a leader to the group rather than being a father to his children. He did not do the best job balancing. In certain respects, Azumi has done more to raise Yu than their father has. Besides the conversations, I'm sure you can pick up on some of the symbolism I used in those situations.

Despite Haru's deficiencies as a father, he does still care about his children greatly. He did not 'completely' hold Azumi in contempt and allowed her to tell her side of the story rather than simply letting what other people said convince him. However, he does know that some of her actions will cause issues regardless of their intentions. That is just what the world is like regardless of whether it is the one he knows or post-apocalyptic.

On another note, I'm fully aware that one of the main characters name in God Eater is Kota. However, it is unrealistic for there not to be other people who share the same name or variations of it. That was what I was going for with Kouta who is one of the leaders of the group. I also figured that there shouldn't be a problem with this since that name does have variations.

I would like to take time to remind all of you that God Eater 2 Rage Burst will be released at the end of August 2016. If you preorder now, you'll not only be able to get some costume DLC, but you will also get a digital copy of the first game for free. I hope you will enjoy playing the game either for Playstation or PC. I know I am.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed reading the second chapter of the story and liked at least some of the new characters I introduced. I also hope you liked how I further developed the brother and sister relationship Yu and Azumi have. I hope you'll continue to support the story and provide reviews. I would greatly appreciate the feedback. See you next time.


	3. Different Worlds

**Author Notes** : As you saw in the previous chapter, while Haru has certain strengths at being a leader, namely being good on the field, he is poor in other areas. For example, he did let the council speak out a lot before he finally silenced them. Additionally, he is not the best parent to either Azumi or Yu. Sometimes when people have to be leaders, they have to make certain sacrifices or they lose sight of other things.

While I originally planned on releasing this chapter on August 30th, 2016 to coincide with the release of God Eater 2 Rage Burst in the West, my busy schedule and the lack of reviews caused a delay. I do enjoy writing these stories, but receiving feedback in reviews can provide a strong motivator to keep moving forward. I greatly appreciate feedback for my work. However, I did receive more reviews, and I was pleased to get them.

It doesn't surprise me some of you have 'mixed' feelings regarding Haru. The point was to write him as someone who isn't exactly the best father. He is not completely incompetent as a leader, as I showcased with him being good on the field. However, it is difficult being a leader and the stress he has had for years along with Azumi's actions has caused difficulty. He was once a much better leader than this since he did create the group and accomplished much, but he is not what he used to be.

Since Azumi and Yu are the main characters of this story, I'm glad that the reception of them has been pretty positive. I'm glad that I was able to write a good storyline for a brother and sister relationship. Since they live in a post-apocalyptic world, their relationship can't exactly be what you'd expect from current day since Azumi had to teach her brother how to survive, and she was more or less promoted to being both his big sister and parent. However, as you saw in the previous chapter, they have calm moments that show how much they care for each other both on and off the field. The sibling bond is strong, and I look forward to developing it further.

As usual, I hope you enjoy the new chapter and please provide a review. Feedback is greatly appreciated.

/

Past is Prologue

Story Arc One – Surviving in the Wild – Part III

Chapter Three – Right, Wrong, and Gray Part II – Different Worlds

/

The world is different

We can never be the same

That is how it is

/

 **Location: Japan**

 **Date: June 30** **th** **, 2068**

It had been two days since Azumi and Yu's encounter with the group that had threatened them. As usual, Azumi had made sure to get her injuries examined by the doctor, and she gave herself some time to rest and recover. However, Azumi was the type of person who could only comply with the doctor's orders for a day or two at most. She and her brother were out and about only two days later, and she was sure that her neck had recovered enough.

As usual Azumi led Yu throughout parts of the ruined city while keeping an eye out for any Aragami or bandits. Their hands were never too far from their weapons ready to draw at a moment's notice. Luckily, they did not have any run-ins with either enemy. Eventually, Azumi noticed a structure that appeared to be intact enough and would be worth checking out.

"All right Yu." Azumi glanced back toward her brother as she pointed out the building. "We'll take a break over there."

"Okay Sis." Yu followed his sister's lead.

As the duo approached the building, Azumi pointed out, "The third floor should give us a good vantage point just in case."

Yu silently followed his sister's recommendation. As they were walking through the building, there was a pipe protruding from the wall that Yu did not pay attention to. "Grh!" Yu grunted as he brushed up against it.

Azumi turned around and asked, "Are you okay Yu?"

"I'm fine. I just …," Yu hesitantly told his sister, "… didn't notice that pipe over there."

Azumi told her brother, "We need to get that wound checked. Did you bring the first-aid kit this time?"

"Yeah." Yu nodded, "But I don't think we need to worry about that. I don't think it cut me."

"Just check it." Azumi ordered. "You already know as well as me that when we do get injured we need to take care of it right away."

"Um … right." Yu nodded. He took off his jacket to see to check the area where he hit his arm. As he thought, it didn't give him an injury to draw blood, but it did leave a noticeable mark on it that would most likely fade away given time.

"Hmm …" Azumi inspected the mark herself. "You should be fine, but put a little bit of ointment on it." Yu winced when his sister touched the freshly formed bruise. "Better to be safe than sorry."

Yu immediately complied with his sister's recommendation. As she was placing the ointment, he said to his sister with a hint of embarrassment and shame, "Sorry Sis …"

"For what?" Azumi asked.

"When we got into this building, I kinda …" Yu admitted, "let my guard down."

"…" Azumi told her brother, "I'm not angry Yu. What's important is that you'll be okay. Just be glad this is all that happened."

"But it was such a stupid mistake." Yu bitterly remarked.

"We all make mistakes Yu." Azumi stated, "And you can't exactly be on guard every moment of every day. It's just not possible."

"I know. I know." Yu repeated. "It's just that I want to be as good as you Sis. You hardly ever seem to make them."

"Don't worry Yu. Your big sister has made plenty of them." Azumi emphasized as she stood up. "Believe me."

"…" Yu remained silent.

Azumi sighed. "All this time being out here Yu the most important thing I learned is when you let your guard down, you leave yourself vulnerable." Azumi added, "What's important is to know when it is okay to let your guard down and be vulnerable. Because like I said, you can't be on guard all the time. Its just not possible."

"Then when would be a good time?" Yu asked. "Like when we're at camp or something?"

"Yeah since we have lookouts." Azumi replied, "Or when you know someone else is watching your back."

"Oh." Yu nodded.

"Anyway, let's eat. We can't exactly scavenge on an empty stomach right?" Azumi chuckled a little as she pulled the food from her backpack.

"Heh." Yu chuckled as well. "No."

As the two ate their lunches, Azumi sat close to the window and occasionally checked outside for activity. While they were eating, Yu decided now was as good a time as any to tell his sister, "Sis … I talked to father about what happened?"

Azumi shook her head and brushed her hand through her hair. "Why am I not surprised?" Azumi walked away from the window and towards her brother, "So how'd it go? Was it as bad as mine?" Azumi dryly asked.

"I don't know," Yu shook his head, "but he said he was worried about you."

"Hmph." Azumi crossed her arms and leaned against the wall. "Interesting. Anything else?"

"I kinda had a hard time following him. He hates that you killed those guys, but he said it mattered that we made it out alive. Then we got into a whole lot of other stuff." Yu was completely perplexed, "It was really weird. I mean it sounded like he was glad that we were alive, but then he was worried about how this 'world' is controlling us and stuff like that. Shouldn't the two of us being alive be more important?"

"…" Azumi took a moment to calmly tell her brother, "He's just worried about what we do."

"What do we do?" The wrinkles began to form on Yu's forehead.

Azumi clarified, "He's worried about how we do things."

"Is father wrong Sis?" Yu asked.

"Huh?" This time Azumi was caught off guard by Yu's question.

Yu explained, "From the way he talks he makes it sound like we should have surrendered to those guys that attacked us." The fingers of Yu's free hand curled into a fist that ate into his skin.

"He …" Azumi stepped away from the wall as she awkwardly answered, "He didn't mean that exactly."

Yu crossed his arms and legs as he remarked, "It sounds like it though."

"… Yeah. It would sound like that, but I'm sure he didn't mean it like that. Father …" Azumi did her best to pick her words careful as she told her brother, "Father hasn't always been the best at choosing words."

"But still …" Yu said in disbelief, "he would've wanted us to settle things peacefully with those guys. Even though I told him that it wasn't possible, it wasn't enough to convince him. It didn't matter if he could argue back or not. He didn't change his mind or even think about it." Yu bit the corner of his lips before bitterly repeating his questions, "Doesn't this mean that father's wrong? Is his way of thinking wrong?"

"Hmm …" Azumi considered her next words carefully, "I wouldn't say it's wrong. It's just different. You know he was a cop right?"

"Yes." Yu nodded.

"I'm sure you also know that a cop was meant to be a 'peace officer' back in the old days." Azumi stated in a matter of fact tone, "They helped enforce rules and arrested people who broke them."

"Yeah I know that." Yu replied, "He told me lethal force wasn't normally used."

"That's probably true." Azumi affirmatively stated, "It's because he was a 'peace officer,' father tries to hold himself back. That's why we have to remember father lived in a different world than us."

"Hmm …" Azumi's words appeared to have struck a chord with Yu.

Azumi walked back to the window and leaned against the wall again as she briefly checked outside before continuing, "I may not remember much of that world, but I do remember it used to be a lot brighter than this one. Maybe things were more straight-forward back then." Azumi shook her head, "I honestly don't know. All I now is after the Aragami popped up, the world became grayer in more than one way. That's just how it is."

"Yeah …" Yu solemnly responded.

"It's not that he's wrong. It's just that things are different." Azumi clarified, "Different from this world. That's probably why we can't see eye to eye on things."

"That does make a lot of sense … I guess." Yu told his sister, "You're pretty good about thinking deeply on stuff like this."

"Well it's important to understand more than just your perspective. Mom always told me that if you ignore anyone else's besides your own, you might never understand things." Azumi spoke her trademark words, "You got that?"

Yu nodded, "Yes Sis, but there's something I'd like your opinion on." Yu emphasized, "You're honest opinion."

Azumi asked in a dry tone, "Are you saying I'm not honest with you?"

"No! No!" Yu stood up and furiously shook his head. "That's not what I meant at all. I just …"

"Heh!" Azumi chuckled. "I'm just kidding Yu."

"Oh come on Sis!" Yu replied in dismay.

"Sorry. Sorry." Azumi smiled as she sheepishly apologized. "What would you like to know?"

"Ah huff." Yu took a deep breath as he sunk back down to his seating position. "I want to know. Do you think father is a terrible leader or just a terrible father?"

"Wha …" Azumi instinctively took a step back at the question. "What makes you ask that?"

"Why wouldn't I ask that?" Yu held out his fingers as he listed, "First, he lets other people talk bad about you. Second, he keeps letting them do that." Yu's eyes narrowed and wrinkles could be seen forming on his forehead as his voice began to sound rather 'venomous' while asking, "He's supposed to be our father right? Shouldn't he be trying to do something to help you? Shouldn't he try to get things like that under control?"

"…" Azumi could only bite the corner of her lip in response.

Yu gritted his teeth before continuing, "It looks like he just makes it worse. Not to mention," Yu hold out a third finger, "he's always hard on you even when you didn't do anything wrong. That doesn't seem like a good leader or a good father to me."

"Well …" Azumi hesitantly replied, "… I'll admit that father isn't as great as he was …"

"So there was a time when he was a good leader?" Yu skeptically asked.

"Yes." Azumi did her best to explain, "You weren't born yet, but when everything began, he was the one who got things started." Azumi smiled as she told her brother, "So many people wouldn't be alive it if weren't for him, but being a leader is hard Yu. Things are hard enough for me when I just have manage things for the two of us or whenever we bring someone with us. I can hardly imagine how hard it must be for him."

"…" Yu did not have much to say in response.

"I don't think Father is a bad leader, but … well … he's not as good as he used to be." Azumi answered. "I'm sure being a leader for so long has been stressful for him, and I'm sure what happened with those people the other day didn't help matters."

"Do you really feel that way?" Yu asked with crossed arms.

"Yes." Azumi replied.

"…" Yu considered Azumi's response before replying, "Okay. If you say so Sis. In that case, can you answer me something else?"

"What would you like to know Yu?" Azumi took a bite out of her sandwich after asking.

"Well …" Yu seems slightly hesitant to ask his next question before blurting out, "Is there something wrong with mother?"

"Mmm?" Azumi's head shot forward. Azumi looked as if she was about to choke on her food before she swallowed it down. "Ah huff." Azumi let out a breath before asking, "Why do you ask that?"

"Well …" Yu glanced away briefly before looking at his sister again. "I've been wondering this for a while now, and something just feels … kinda of off about her." Yu tried to clarify, "I mean she just seems well … different compared to some of the other people in our group. She has a hard time noticing something when things aren't right. Sometimes it feels like people just want her out of the way. It kinda feels like the doctor is keeping an eye on her rather than having her be his assistant."

"…" Azumi broke eye contact with Yu for a good few seconds.

"Um …" Yu uneasily pressed on, "Is there something wrong with her?"

Azumi hesitantly answered, "Sort of …"

Yu moved his body forward. "So there is something wrong with her?"

"…" Once again Azumi bit her lip lightly before responding, "This is something we really shouldn't talk about now."

"What do you mean?" Yu tilted his head.

"Yu …" Azumi solemnly asked her brother. "You trust me right?"

"Yeah …" Yu replied.

Azumi stated, "You know I've always been honest with you about things, but I've also told you that I can't explain everything to you right away right?"

"That's right." Yu nodded.

"This is one of those things." Azumi remarked, "Sometimes you're better off waiting until you're older before learning them."

"…" Yu remained silent.

Azumi assured her brother, "I'm not saying this because I'm trying to put you down, but please understand that I'm telling you that you're better off learning about it when you're older. There were plenty of things I didn't learn or understand until I was older, so I'm just giving you the same treatment."

"Um … okay …" Yu glanced down.

"Listen Yu." Azumi kneeled next to where her brother was sitting and put her hand on his shoulder to get him to look in her direction. "I promise to answer that question when you're a little older. You know I keep my promises."

"I do." Yu nodded, "Okay. I'll wait."

"Good." Azumi stood up and walked back towards her previous position and said, "Now let's finish up." The two of them took a few more minutes to finish eating their lunches. After Azumi saw that Yu was finished eating, Azumi pushed herself from the wall and said, "All right, breaks over. We need to get some scavenging done. I know this goes without saying, but be on the lookout for metal. We won't be able to make a good spear without it."

"Right." Yu put his backpack back on and followed his sister's lead. He made sure to avoid the pipe this time.

/

As they explored the various buildings to scavenge for supplies, Yu could see that his sister always had her hand close to her gun or knife. He knew that if anyone wanted to cause them trouble she would be able to pull it out either weapon and be ready for whatever danger they posed. He knew he could always count on her for whatever situation they found themselves in. As happy as he was to have a big sister to rely on, Yu felt like there was something lacking.

"Sis …" Yu hesitantly spoke up, "I've been wondering …"

Azumi stopped walking and turned to look back at her brother. "What is it?"

"Well …" Yu was still hesitant to speak the words even though it was his sister. Or rather because it was his sister.

"Why so tongue tied?" Azumi tried to sound encouraging as she told her brother, "Come on. You can tell me."

"I …" Yu took a moment before he spit it out, "I was wondering when I should learn how to use a gun."

"Hmm …" Azumi crossed her arms and briefly closed her eyes as she considered Yu's words. "That's a good question. I'm not really sure."

"Huh?" Yu tilted his head.

"It's not that I don't want to teach you. Believe me I do." Azumi shook her hands as she explained, "It's just things are much worse than when father taught me."

Yu asked, "All the more reason I should learn right?"

"Not what I meant Yu." Azumi shook her head, "Father and I had a lot more supplies to work with and there was more places to practice. Now they're fewer and far between. I can't honestly say if there is anywhere I can help you practice how to shoot."

"Oh …" Yu replied disappointment.

"But you're right. You should learn how to use a gun." Azumi's words caused Yu's face to brighten. It made her happy to see Yu's wide smile. "Practice shooting might be off the table right now, but I can teach you some basics. We'll get started after we get back to camp. You got that?"

"Yes I do Sis." Yu enthusiastically responded.

"Then let's focus on finishing this up and getting back to the camp in one piece so you can learn." Azumi ordered.

Yu happily replied, "You got it Sis."

/

About an hour later when Azumi picked up another piece of metal to add to her backpack, she said to herself, "This might be enough." She then unzipped the backpack and placed it with the rest she collected. She turned to her brother and asked, "Any luck Yu?"

"Yeah. I'm good." Yu was examining a piece of metal he obtained as he asked, "Should we try getting more stuff?"

"No." Azumi picked up her backpack and flung it around as she told her brother, "I think we got enough for today. We should head back."

"Okay." Yu placed the metal in his backpack and picked it up as well.

 **Crash!**

Before they could leave the building, Azumi heard something nearby. Azumi spoke in a low voice, "You hear something?"

"Yeah." Yu made sure to keep his voice low as well.

"Let's check it out." Azumi followed by her brother walked towards the source of the noise. They made sure to keep low and minimize any sound they made. Shortly after, they discovered the source of the noise and hid behind some rumble.

"What are you doing?! You idiot!" A bald man said to one of his companions, "Etsuko-sama wants whatever we find in one piece!"

The bald man was clearly the one in charge of this group because the man he was ridiculing nervously replied, "S … Sorry sir."

"Just be more careful!" The bald man then walked away.

Azumi and Yu peered to see there were several more in the room. They made sure to keep as low as possible not attract attention. It didn't appear anyone noticed them.

"Well …" Azumi softly spoke her brother, "Looks like for once we're the ones who spotted someone else first."

Yu nervously asked, "What … What should we do?"

"Let's avoid them." Azumi quietly ordered, "We got what we need, and there's no need to get into a fight if we can avoid it."

"Right." Yu pointed towards a possible exit. "We can probably get out that way." He made sure to keep note of possible escape routes while he was scavenging.

"All right. Let's go." Azumi responded.

After the two of them put some distance between themselves and the scavengers, it appeared they were in the clear. Azumi and Yu stood up and began walking normally. No one appeared to be following them. They were not far from the exit until something suddenly seemed off.

 **Creak!**

A sound could be heard echoing in the hallway. Azumi stopped walking and her brother immediately stopped moving as well. Azumi casually told her brother, "We had a pretty good haul, but it's starting to get late." As she was speaking, she slowly began removing her backpack with one hand as she held out her other hand which she pointed her index finger behind them. "We don't want to be out there after sunset." Azumi was reaching for her knife.

Yu reached for his knife and slowly began removing his backpack as he glanced over his shoulder. From the corner of Yu's eye, he noticed movement. They were being followed. Whoever was following them must have realize they had been spotted because both a man and woman emerged from hiding and lunged at the brother and sister.

Both Azumi and Yu spun around as they easily removed their backpacks with their knives in hand, but it wasn't necessary. The man attempted to attack Azumi with a wild punch that Azumi was easily able to duck under. She could feel the gust created by the man's outstretched arm before she grabbed it with her hand. Rather than impaling the man with her knife, she let go of it and grabbed his arm with her other hand.

By using the combination of his strength and her own to lift him up from the ground, she flipped him over her body. The man's back hit the ground before he knew what was happening. Azumi quickly rendered him unconscious with a swift punch to the face. Her knuckles buried into the man's cheek as she further pressed his head into the floor. She could swear her knuckles left an indentation on his cheek as she moved to pick up her knife. Azumi turned to see how her brother was doing.

Likewise, Yu had someone who was underestimating him. He dodged underneath the woman's attempt to grab him. However, Yu crouched down and kicked out his leg and hit into the woman's ankle. At the point of contact, the woman felt as if the bones of her feet were cracking apart as her face was about to meet the ground. When she attempted to pick herself up, Yu kicked her head as if he was attempting to make a field goal in an American Football game. Her head and body flew in the air before she promptly hit the ground. She would not be getting back up any time soon.

Even though both attackers had been neutralized, Azumi could still feel something else. She could feel it in the air as she held out her knife. After living in this world so long, she had more or less developed a sixth sense. She confidently called out, "You might as well come out. A sneak attack isn't going to work on us."

"Might as well." An unknown voice said in response.

One of the people who emerged from the shadows was none other than the bald man they saw earlier. Similar to Azumi, the man appeared to have seen better days. He had scar that went across his lips and the right side of his chin along with a scar that moved along his left cheek. He had dark brown eyes with a couple of teeth missing. He appeared to be the alpha of this particular group as they followed his order to come out of hiding.

Azumi could feel that there were no other group members to worry about, but she maintained her guard. She continued to hold her knife as she reassured her enemy, "Don't worry about your friends. They're just knocked out."

"Figured as much." The bald man remarked, "You could've slit their throats, but you didn't. I must say that I do appreciate that very much." The bald man sounded sincere as he spoke.

"As long as no one tries doing anything stupid that won't happen." Azumi then pointed her knife down towards her beaten foe. "Now! Stand down!

"…" The bald man ordered, "Everyone! Stand down!"

"Grrh." Even though they listed, none of the remaining members of his group bothered hiding their frustration. Apparently, they were not used to having the tables turned on them. Azumi could feel all their eyes stabbing daggers in her body. Yu felt tempted to move back, but he saw Azumi was standing her ground, and he did his best to do the same.

"That's good." Azumi asked, "Now then. What were you going to do if these snakes' attack worked?" 

The bald bandit replied, "Rob you and let you go."

"I doubt that." Azumi dryly replied. 

"Hmph." The bald bandit stated, "I suppose I'll just leave it up to you to decide."

"I seriously don't care." Azumi maintained her grip on her knife as she attempted to scan the area for any more surprises.

"You don't have to worry." The bald man assured Azumi. "There aren't any more of us here."

"Figured." Azumi remarked, "But it's not a good idea to take your enemies word for it."

"Hmph." The bald man shrugged. "Fair point."

As Azumi was scanning the area, her eyes came across a traditional Japanese katana that was attached to the bald man's hip. "That's a pretty nice sword you got there. Like doing things feudal style?"

"Sometimes …" The bald man seemed to be caught by surprise by Azumi's question, but he quickly regained his composure as he placed his hand on the sword's hilt. "Things sound like they'd be so much simpler."

"If you go by might makes right, things don't seem that much different from then." Azumi continued to hold out her knife.

"Hmph." The bald man scratched his chin. "True, but not quite how'd I like it."

"Sounds like you were born in the wrong century then." Azumi said with a grin.

"I think we were all born at the wrong time." The bald man chuckled with that remark.

Both Azumi and the bald man chuckled while the rest of the people in the area remained silent. When she was done chuckling, Azumi kept grinning while maintaining a firm grip on her knife. "You'll get no argument from me."

"…" None of the other people on either side spoke up. Yu remained by his sister's side as he watched the situation develop. Despite the friendly banter between Azumi and the bald man, he could felt like he could cut the tension in the area with a knife. Just like his sister, he maintained his grip on his own weapon in case things went south. Or rather when they went south.

Azumi spoke up again in a commanding voice. "Just so you know this doesn't have to go any further. You got two guys knocked out, and it can end right there. No one else has to get hurt and we can go about our merry way."

"…" Yu remained silent as he kept glancing between his sister and the bald man.

Before the bald man could say something in response, "Not to mention, we could've killed you, you know."

"Huh?" The bald bandit seemed rather surprised by that remark.

"You think you're the only one who heard that loud crash earlier." Azumi dryly replied. In turn, it caused the bald man to glare at one of his subordinates with piercing eyes which caused her to back away. "The whole building could've heard it. We could've attacked you, but we didn't."

"Well …" The bald man remarked, "I guess that makes you a 'very nice' or a 'very stupid' person."

"Based on what's happening now, I'd say 'pretty stupid.'" Azumi dryly replied with a shrug.

"Ha. Ha. Ha." The bald man laughed.

"Why don't we just pretend we never saw each other, and we go our separate ways in peace?" There was no pleading in Azumi's voice. She remained firm as she negotiated. "No harm. No foul. Okay."

"Hmm …" The bald man seemed to be considering the idea. "Maybe, but there's still a few issues we need to take care of. Our group does need supplies after all."

"You know what." With her free hand, Azumi reached for her belt. "Let me make this easy for you." Azumi pulled out her gun.

"Holy crap!" One of the bandits who had been silent shouted. "She's got a gun!"

"Yes. And I know how to use it." Azumi sternly remarked as her finger turned off the safety. "If you don't want to be on the wrong side of the barrel, I'd suggest you leave my brother and me alone."

"…" The bald man didn't say a word. He just looked Azumi in the eyes. Both sets of eyes pierced the other. He could tell she wasn't bluffing.

"Hold on a gun!" One of the other bandits spoke up. "That thing's real isn't it?"

"Yes." Azumi replied, "I wouldn't be carrying it around if it was a fake." Her fingers were ready to pull on the trigger if they approached her or Yu.

"You think that's …" One of the bandits began to say.

"It has to be." Another bandit finished the sentence with gritted teeth. "A couple of days ago we heard a gunshot." Azumi and Yu knew where this was going. "After a few of us were eaten by some Aragami, we found a room filled with four of our men dead. One of them looked like his brains had been shot out." The bandits glared at Azumi as he asked, "You wouldn't happen to know anything about that would you?"

"I would. I was the one who pulled the trigger." Azumi unashamedly admitted as her eyes pierced through the ones standing in front of her.

"You … You little …" The bandit began moving towards Azumi only for the bald bandit to put his hand up, "What're you …?"

"Stop!" The bald bandit raised his voice. "Or do you want to end up like Gorou?" He reminded his subordinate in a deadpan voice, "Don't forget she still has the gun. Unless you got bulletproof armor, you've got nothing on her."

"…" The room was silent after listening to the bald man's matter of fact tone. Both sides were holding the line.

Azumi broke the silence by remarking, "Regardless of what happened, it doesn't change that I'm the one with the gun and you're not. You can tell the difference in our equipment, but let me spell it out for you anyway." Azumi pointed towards the bald bandit's belt. "You have a sword. I have a gun. Who do you think would win in that matchup? I'm pretty sure you already know the answer." The bald man took his hand away from the hilt of his blade. "Glad to see you're reasonable. This doesn't have to end with any of us dead. We can all walk away from this **alive**." Azumi placed extra emphasis on the last word.

The bald man replied in a deadpan tone, "That would be the preferable option." He raised his hand to signal his other men to back down.

Despite the bald man ordering his men to back down, the tensions were still high. It didn't change the fact Azumi was the enemy they had been seeking. Simultaneously, she was so close but so far away for these bandits. None of them dared to take another step out of fear of being on the wrong end of the barrel, but it did not erase the looks on their faces. If their eyes were daggers, Azumi would have been covered in them. Yu held onto his knife firmer just in case.

Regardless of how high the tensions were, the bald bandit remained calm as he spoke to Azumi without worrying about anyone else attempting to break the atmosphere. "I have to say I'm pretty surprised. You're either honest to a fault or completely foolish for confessing."

"Hmm … I'd go with honest to a fault because here's something else I'm going to be honest about." Since Azumi was the one with the gun, no one was going to interrupt her. Azumi's eyes continued to pierce through the bald bandit's as she bitterly and bluntly remarked, "You're friends weren't saints. They held my little brother hostage, and they made the mistake of thinking this gun was fake. When they didn't let my brother go after I warned them, they learned the hard way how wrong they were." Azumi's finger circled around the trigger. If they crossed the line, she would not hesitate. It didn't matter if the gunfire could attract an Aragami or not. She held her ground as she sternly told him, "If you don't want to learn the same lesson, I suggest you let us go, and we all live."

"…" The room was silent before the bald bandit reluctantly replied. "… Fine."

"Are you serious?" One of the bandits angrily asked.

"Quiet!" The bald bandit ordered, "We're pulling back and that's final! Anyone who disobeys this order will have to answer to me!"

"…" None of the other bandits dared to speak out of turn.

The bald bandit refocused his attention on Azumi as he warned her, "We'll end it like this, but we better not meet again."

"If I can help it, we won't." Azumi casually said with a shrug.

"Let's get out of here." The bald bandit ordered.

"But sir she …" One of the bandits attempted to protest.

"She not only had a gun, but four of our men couldn't beat her." The bald man piercingly asked, "What chance do you think we have? Let's go." The bald man glanced back at the two and told them, "We'll be back for those other two in a few minutes. You better make yourselves scarce before then."

"…" Azumi remained silent as she watched the other bandits leave the area. Afterwards, Azumi placed her gun back in her holster, but she maintained her grip on her knife as she grabbed her backpack from the ground. Her brother did the same. "Let's head back."

"Right." Yu nodded and followed his sister's lead.

As they walked away, Azumi could not help but have a queasy feeling in her stomach as she admitted to her brother, "I can't help but feel I just made a huge mistake."

Hearing his sister say that not only caused the hairs on his back to stand, he began to share the queasy feeling as well as he desperately replied, "But we didn't kill them …" Various thoughts were moving through his head as he kept asking question. "We ended it peacefully right? That's what father wants right?"

Azumi grimly reminded her brother, "They know our faces now, and they know I'm the one who killed their friends … I might've convinced them to stand down now, but …" Azumi didn't know what else to say.

"But … I thought we tried to do the right thing? Didn't we?" Yu nervously asked.

"The bald guy might keep his word, but the others …" Azumi hesitantly admitted to the all too familiar scene, "I could see it in their eyes. They want me dead. You saw it too didn't you?"

"…" Yu reluctantly replied, "Yes."

"Exactly." Azumi bitterly remarked, "This might not be over. Not by a long shot."

"If you think this isn't over, why didn't we kill them?" Yu asked in concern, "Should we chase after them? I'm sure we could catch them if we tried."

Azumi lightly bit her lip before replying, "You know … I'm really, ' **really** ' tempted to say yes, but I'm going to say no."

"W… Why?" Yu was completely confused.

"Remember what I told you about the scar on my cheek?" Azumi touched the scar on her left cheek.

"Yeah." Yu nodded.

"You remember how I told you that the person didn't listen to reason or threats?" Azumi followed up.

"Yes." Yu then added, "You said when you could've killed him, you tried to be merciful, but he ended up trying to kill you anyway."

"That's right." Azumi rationalized, "While that guy didn't listen to reason or threats, that bald guy did, and those idiots seem to listen to him. He didn't give me a real reason to kill them, and I don't want to kill someone without one. If we do that, we're just murderers. You got that?"

"Y … Yeah." Yu hesitantly replied.

"I asked, 'You got that'?" Azumi emphasized.

Yu replied, "I got that."

"Good." Azumi took a breath before stating, "Despite how I feel, I do think the bald guy was reasonable, and I hope what we tried to do sticks." Azumi involuntarily shook her head, "I'm not exactly counting on it, but I'm really hoping it does."

"Hmm …" Yu still did not feel comfortable with this situation.

"Let's head back, and let's do what we can to make sure we're not followed." Azumi stated as she began to glance up and down the area. Afterwards, the brother and sister team began making haste towards their camp while keeping an eye out for Aragami and any other humans.

"Okay, but do you think we should let father and the other know about what just happen?" Yu asked.

Azumi kept a watchful eye throughout the area as she replied, "We already told them that there's another group here. I don't think we need to tell them about this."

"You sure?" Yu remarked. "Not telling them might not be a good idea."

Azumi glanced back before she stopped moving and turned to her brother, "After all the grief they've been giving me, I'd rather not give them something else to talk about."

"But we didn't kill them this time. We didn't have to …" There was a hint of desperation in Yu's voice as he asked, "Wouldn't you want them to know that?'

Azumi crossed her arms as she replied, "... I wonder if they'd actually believe that."

"Why wouldn't they?" Yu assured his sister, "I'll be there to back you up."

"…" After taking a moment, Azumi reluctantly replied, "All right fine. We'll tell them." She then ordered, "Let's keep moving!"

Yu followed suit as he replied, "Great. People will start changing their minds about you."

"Don't expect people minds to change so easily Yu." Azumi warned her brother, "It'll only disappoint you."

"Sis …" The fire in Yu's voice seemed to be snuffed out upon hearing his sister say that.

"Enough talking about that!" Azumi picked up the pace again as she repeated her order, "We need to keep moving! Come on Yu! Time's wasting!"

"Right!" Yu continued to follow his sister's lead.

/

Shortly after arriving back at the camp, Azumi and Yu gave their report to the leaders as usual. They warned them of how the group they encountered a few days ago was part of a larger one, and they would need to be careful. Azumi would attempt to give her recommendation for what they should do next. Unfortunately, Azumi was not the one who could give orders, and her report was received about as warmly as she expected.

"So you're saying you encountered another group that attacked you but you didn't kill them?" Kouta skeptically asked.

"They were willing to listen to reason, and they backed down." Azumi calmly responded. "There was no point in trying to kill anyone."

"I have to say I'm surprised given your track record." Kouta remarked.

"…" Yu bit his lips and clenched his fist.

"That's going a little out of bounds Kouta-san." Shin spoke up in Azumi's defense.

"I don't go looking for trouble, and I don't go out looking to kill people." Azumi put her hand on her chest. "Trouble just has a way of finding me."

"That would be putting it mildly." Kouta dryly remarked.

"From what I heard trouble tends to find you easily too." Azumi snarked. "Did you and my father almost have a run in with Aragami the other day?"

"…" Kouta did not have much to say in response.

"I think that's enough." Haru spoke up as he looked at Kouta and Azumi. "We should just let Azumi finish her report. No more interruptions."

"Hmph …" Azumi continued, "Regardless, I think we should be focusing on the bigger issue. This proves the people I killed before are part of a bigger group. We might have to deal with these people again."

"But didn't you …" Kouta began to speak up only to be cut off by Haru.

Haru asked, "So you believe these people will still be a threat to us?"

"It is very possible." Azumi replied.

"I suppose a truce with them wouldn't work would it?" Haru mused.

"That was just a Band-Aid." Azumi clarified, "I could tell some of those people really wanted to rip me apart. We need to be ready for these people." Azumi recommended, "We should try leaving sooner rather than later."

"…" Haru replied to his daughter, "As much as I'd want to follow up on your recommendation, we still do not have all the necessary supplies. Leaving at this very moment isn't an option."

"If that's the case, we need to get them faster." Azumi firmly stated, "We don't want to be here when someone decides to rip the Band-Aid off."

"Very well." Haru replied, "If we double our efforts, we should be able to finish this quickly. Thank you for your report Azumi."

"…" Azumi respectfully bowed, and Yu did the same. "We'll take our leave then." Afterwards, both Azumi and Yu left the meeting room.

/

After they put their distance from the meeting room, Yu wasted no time voicing his displeasure, "Those guys really pissed me off."

"I can tell." Azumi dryly replied.

"Grrh!" Yu's fingernails continued to dig into his hand as he remarked, "I mean come on. You didn't do anything wrong, and they still treated you like that." Yu raised his arm. "Father barely did a thing as usual." 

Azumi put her hand on her hip as she calmly told him, "I told you before and I'll tell you again opinions don't change that easily. Besides, father has other things to worry about as well."

"I know but still that …" Yu took a moment before he could finish that thought. "That just pisses me off."

Azumi smiled before she remarked, "Unfortunately, there's nothing we can do about what other people think, but that's not usually important."

"How did you stay so calm Sis? How'd it not bother you?" Yu asked has he raised up his fist. "I wanted to belt that guy."

"You weren't the only one who wanted to belt Kouta." Azumi admitted, "Believe me. I just kept it to myself."

"How'd you do it then?" Yu asked.

"Years of practice." Azumi stated in a matter of fact tone.

"Hmm …" Was all Yu could say.

"Don't worry about it." Azumi began ruffling her little brother's hair again.

"Hey!" Yu tried to get his sister's hand off his head, but he failed much to his chagrin.

"Don't worry Yu." Azumi grinned at her brother's reaction as she continued ruffling his hair. "You'll get better at it too when you get older."

"Cut that out!" Yu protested and Azumi complied.

Azumi continued grinning in amusement at her brother's reaction as she playfully responded, "Sorry, sorry. You're just really fun to mess around with."

Yu sighed, "Sis …"

Azumi shook her head. "Anyway, enough talking about this." Azumi told her brother, "Let's get something to eat and then let's do that training I promised."

"You mean it?" When Azumi nodded, Yu's frustration suddenly dissipated and his enthusiasm shot up through the roof. "All right!"

/

After the meeting with Haru and the other council members had been officially adjourned, only Haru and Shin remained in the room. Shortly after the door was closed, and Shin was sure no one else was listening in, Shin stood next to his friend as he curtly asked him, "So even when your daughter manages to avoid taking a life, it isn't good enough?"

Haru glanced away from his friend as he told him, "I was actually pleased by that report."

"Really?" The space between Shin's eyebrows shrunk as he stated, "You have a funny way of showing it."

"I did make it clear that her report was not to be interrupted any further." Haru defensively stated.

"You shouldn't have let Kouta interrupt and diminish her in the first place." Shin sternly told his friend, "As a father and a leader, you should've stopped him from the start."

"…" Haru had nothing to say in his defense as he glanced down.

Shin crossed his arms and shook his head, "What happened to you Haru?"

"Huh?" Haru looked up.

"What happened to the leader who I met all those years ago?" Once again the space between Shin's eyebrows had shrunk. "The man who created this group? The man who trained his daughter to defend herself and trained other people to do the same?"

"He's right here." Haru indignantly answered.

"Pfft." Shin scoffed. "It doesn't look like it. You let Kouta and others walk all over you before you finally man up. The old you would've done that long before that."

"Grrh …" Haru glanced away. "All I want is to …" Haru was unable to finish his sentence.

Shin placed his hand on Haru's should and Haru looked him in the eyes. "Long ago you told me that you want me to give you advice. Well I have some advice for you. I'd advise you to step down."

Haru's eyes widened. "What?"

"Step down." Shin eyes pierced through Haru, and Haru was unable to say a word in response. "It can be temporary or permanent. Either way, I want you to voluntarily step down and make me the leader of the group."

"Even if I did that, why would the others accept that?" Haru protested.

"I'm one of the longest last members of the group, and I'm the first you asked to form this council." Shin justified. "It should be done sooner rather than later. From the way Kouta acts, I wouldn't be surprised if he would try to become the next leader, and I'd be rather **concerned** about what he would do."

"…" Haru remained silent.

"Right now this is advice." Shin began to walk away. "However, if you keep acting like this, it'll become rather **urgent** before we reach Fenrir." Shin left the room leaving Haru behind.

/

Before they sat down for dinner, Azumi paid her friend, Yashiko, who was preparing the food a visit. When Yashiko saw Azumi enter the room, she immediately asked her friend, "Welcome back Azumi. How did your scavenging go?"

"Well enough …" Azumi cut to the chase. "I have to say it was a little disappointing you didn't come with us after I offered last time."

"Um …" Yashiko sheepishly replied, as she scratched her head, "Sorry about that, but you know I'm not really cut out for that."

Azumi shook her head and crossed her arms, "That's a poor attitude to have." Azumi bluntly told her friend, "You're not always going to have the luxury of being able to stay on the sidelines. I get your parents didn't want you to do this stuff, but you'll only get yourself and others killed if you're not capable."

"…" Yashiko glanced down before replying, "I can always count on you to be honest."

"Of course. We can all use more of that." Azumi reminded Yashiko, "My brother wasn't sure if he could take it out there, but he definitely can now."

"Yeah …" Yashiko hesitantly replied, "I know."

"…" Azumi could see there was no point in continuing this conversation any further. "Just so you know, the door is always open."

"Okay …" Yashiko did not seem particularly eager to continue talking either.

"Well enough about that for now." Azumi asked, "How's dinner? Did the hunters find anything good to eat?"

"Hmm …" Yashiko shook her head, "Not much on the menu today." Yashiko lamented, "Sorry."

"There will be something to eat … right?" Azumi nervously asked.

Yashiko stated in a matter of fact tone. "We might not have much variety, but we'll have enough to go around."

"Phew." Azumi remarked, "I guess I shouldn't be surprised. You always seem to."

"If you're so curious, do you want to help out in the kitchen?" Yashiko offered.

"Um … Kinda …" Azumi was uncharacteristically hesitant to reply.

"Why so hesitant?" Yashiko was rather amused by her friend.

"Do I really have to say?" Azumi replied. "You really shouldn't expect much out of me."

Yashiko raised an eyebrow, "I thought your mother was teaching you how to cook?"

"She tired, but …" Azumi seemed a little embarrassed to remind her friend, "I'm sure you remember that fiasco two years ago."

Yashiko grimaced at the thought, "Yeah I do … but I thought she helped you work on that."

"Like I said." Azumi dryly replied, "She **tried**."

"Ah …" Yashiko nodded in response.

"Anyway, I might not be the 'worst' cook in the world, but I don't quite have the knack for it like I do for scouting and fighting." Azumi admitted, "It might be better to leave it to you."

Yashiko shrugged, "We all have a knack for something right?"

"Maybe," Azumi crossed her arms as she mentioned, "but I'd definitely like to give cooking another shot."

"You really want to?" Yashiko grimaced at the idea.

"I would." Azumi glanced away as she spoke, "Maybe getting someone else to teach me might help." Azumi looked at Yashiko as she asked, "Mind helping me with that?'

"Well … I'll give it a try, but I can't work miracles either." Yashiko replied.

"Gee thanks." Azumi sarcastically remarked before they both began to burst out laughing. Afterwards, the both of them went into the kitchen. Unfortunately, Yashiko was correct. She could not work miracles.

/

During dinner, Azumi observed that Minato was nowhere to be seen. According to Yashiko, he had been in the garage all day. Azumi decided to take his share with her. When Azumi and Yu were outside the garage, she told her brother. "Before we get to training, I need to talk to Minato for a few minutes. Wait for me here okay?"

Yu nodded, "Sure. Okay."

After she entered the garage, she called out, "Hey Minato!"

"Hello Azumi." Minato said in response as he was checking over the vehicles.

"Missed you at dinner." Azumi commented.

"I was on a roll here, so I didn't want to break it." Minato answered without breaking his concentration or missing a beat.

"Hmph." Azumi nodded as she commented, "I can understand that. Yashiko told me to deliver some food for you."

"Thanks." Minato pointed towards a table. "Just put it over there."

"I also got something else for you." Azumi pulled out the bag of metal in her backpack and placed it on the table as well. The sound of the metal being placed on the table caught Minato's attention as he walked over. "Will this be enough?"

"Hmm …" Minato checked the bag. His eyes lit up and a smile stretched across his face. "Oh yes. This'll be more than enough. I'll probably have some extra for something else."

"In that case, you should make something for yourself." Azumi suggested.

"Okay." Minato was pleased at the idea. "I think I'll do that."

"So …" Azumi curiously asked, "How long do you think it'll take for you to make?"

"Not long," Minato added, "especially if I get started tonight."

Azumi raised an eyebrow. "Are you getting started tonight?"

"Oh yes." Minato picked up the metal and put on his worker mask before he warned her, "You might want to step back." After Azumi complied, Minato turned on the power of the blowtorch.

Azumi held up her hands and made sure not to look at the blowtorch's fire as she commented, "I don't think I could ever get used to that."

Minato on the other hand was rather ecstatic as he wielded the device. "Ha! Ha! I was born for this!"

"Well whatever makes you happy." Azumi shrugged and turned around. Before Azumi left, she pointed towards the food on the table. "Don't forget about eating that. Yashiko won't be happy if you don't."

"I won't." Minato replied as he began getting to work.

"Right …" Azumi was 'unconvinced.' "Anyway, see you later."

/

Following the deliveries to Minato, she met with her brother outside. After she made sure they were in an area no one else would bother them, Azumi stayed true to her word, and began teaching Yu the basics of handling a gun.

Azumi held out the gun by the barrel in front of Yu and instructed him, "Hold it with both hands." Her brother complied by placing both hands around the gun's handle. As soon as Azumi saw her brother's fingers wrap around the handle, she let go of it.

When Azumi let go of the gun, Yu could feel his hands be brought down by the weight of the weapon. Yu's eyes widened by the feeling in his hands. He could not only feel its weight, but its 'power.' "It … It's pretty heavy." Yu nervously lamented.

"That's because it's loaded." Azumi stated in a matter of fact tone. "I always make sure it's loaded whenever we're about to head out."

"…" Yu remained silent.

"You don't have to worry. The safety's on." Azumi assured her brother. "Did you honestly think I wouldn't want to take precautions?"

"No!" Yu furiously shook his head as he kept both hands on the gun. "I'd never think that! You're smarter than that! Way smarter than that!" His hands were shaking as he spoke.

"Don't get so worried Yu." Azumi calmly told her brother as she helped straighten his hands. "Especially when you're holding a gun. You got that?"

"Yes Sis." Yu replied and closed his eyes. "Ah huff … Ah huff …" Yu took a couple of deep breaths to calm himself before opening his eyes again.

"That's better." Azumi let go of her brother's hands before she continued with her lecture. "Anyway, you can be assured I do my best to take precautions. However, it is important you understand how it feels to have a fully loaded weapon on hand. It goes without saying that there's a big difference between what a loaded and an empty gun feels like."

"… I see." Yu still had a funny feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"Anyway," Azumi continued her lesson, "you never know how many bullets you need. If you can, try to carry some spares to reload like I do. You got that?"

"I do." Yu nodded, "I'm just … surprised by how heavy it is." Yu was facing a little struggle to keep his aim straight.

"Hmm." Azumi replied, "Think of it as your burden."

"My … My burden?" Yu hesitantly asked.

"It's something father taught me when I was learning." Azumi began to recite the lesson, "A gun is dangerous weapon that can be used for protection. The burden is knowing when and how to use it because when you pull the trigger there's no taking it back. You got that?"

"Yes Sis." Yu nodded, "I promise to be careful."

"Be sure that you do. Believe me." Azumi could not emphasized this next part enough. "You **do not** want to have any regrets when you pull that trigger. I didn't have regrets when I shot that man the other day. The same goes for many others"

"Did …" Yu asked, "Did you ever have regrets before?'

"…" Azumi took a moment before she replied, "That's not important right now. What I'm about to say applies to pretty much every weapon you can use, but it especially true for guns. When you have a gun in hand, you need to be ready to use it and be ready to kill. If you're not, you might not be able to walk away. You got that?"

"I understand Sis." Yu answered.

Azumi crossed her arms. "I know you do, but it's important that you always remember this. I know you've killed in self-defense, but you do remember the old saying right?"

"Yes." Yu recited, "The only ones who **should** kill, are those who are **prepared** to be killed."

"That's right." Azumi nodded with her arms crossed. "That saying is especially true when you are using a gun. Knives can be used for, and guns are meant to mean business." Azumi further clarified as her brother remained silent, "You put your life on the line when you draw. I may have used my gun to sell the threat to those guys before, but I was ready to use it if I had to. I also knew they might draw their weapons on me too even though I was sure they didn't have anything to match it. I put my life on the line when I did that, and …" Azumi briefly closed her eyes and uncrossed her arms as she hesitantly admitted, "I also put your life on the line too."

"…" Yu considered his sister's words. "I see." Those were the only words Yu could say in response.

"I'm not trying to frighten you." Azumi assured her brother, "I just want you to understand a gun is not meant to be taken lightly."

"Ah huff …" Yu took another breath. "I understand Sis." Yu did his best to remain calm and firm. "I do."

"Good because I'll be holding you to that just like I'd want you to hold me to my word." Azumi asked her trademark question, "You got that?'

Yu gave his usual response, "I got that."

"Glad to hear it. Now let's move on to the next step. Reloading." Azumi took the gun from her brother as she began providing him a demonstration.

/

While Azumi was giving her brother a lesson, Yashiko was paying Minato a visit. When she walked in, she saw him eating the dinner she prepared. It was a good thing he decided to take a break a few minutes earlier. Otherwise, she would not have been pleased to see the dinner lying around wasting away.

"Hmph." Yashiko commented, "I see that you're finally eating something."

"I've had a lot to do." Minato responded in-between bites. "It's kinda hard to find a stopping point sometimes."

Yashiko sighed and shook her head, "Honestly. You really need to do a better job taking care of yourself. You won't be much good to us as a mechanic if you starve yourself to death."

"Yes 'Mother.'" Minato sarcastically remarked.

Yashiko looked upon his worktable to see the progress Minato was making. "So how are things going for Azumi's new weapon?"

"They're going fine." Minato asked, "Why do you ask? You don't usually check in on my work."

"You know that wasn't the only reason I'm here." Yashiko sat next to Minato as she quickly added, "Besides, from how things are going, Azumi's going to need as many weapons as she can get."

"That's true." Minato remarked, "It is better to be safe than sorry."

Yashiko took a closer look at the work-in-progress. "How strong do you think the spear will be?"

"Pretty strong." Minato indignantly answered, "It won't break anytime soon if that's what you're worried about."

"I'm sorry if it's coming across wrong." Yashiko backed away, 'I'm just worried. That's all."

It was Minato's turn to sigh before he responded, "You're not the only one. She gets into messes a lot." He added, "A whole lot."

"I … I don't think that's really her fault." Yashiko defensively remarked.

"No, but trouble does tend to find her really often." Minato lamented, "It might catch up to her if she's not ready. Here's hoping the spear can help with that."

"Eh …" Yashiko could feel a shiver crawl up her spine. "It always sounds like the worst is going to happen."

"Hope for the best. Prepare for the worst." Minato put his plate to the side as he prepared to get back to work. "That's how Azumi likes to do things."

"She asked you about the backup plan?" Yashiko inquired.

"Yep." Minato looked towards the motorcycles in the garage as he told her, "We should be all good with that too. All we need to do is keep the gas level in mind."

/

After Azumi had finished giving her brother a few of the basics, they decided to take a break. Azumi placed the gun back in her holster and the two sat by the wall on the floor. Azumi had one knee up and leaned against it as she told her brother, "Sorry I couldn't give you any shooting practice, but I hope this helped."

"It's fine." Yu assured his sister. "I'm glad you taught me what you could." Yu adjusted his posture as he glanced upon Azumi's holstered weapon. "I had no idea you've been carrying around something so heavy this whole time."

Azumi remarked, "It's not too heavy anymore. I'm used to it."

"That's not what I mean." Yu clarified, "I mean … I always knew guns could be dangerous, but when I had it in my hands, I could feel how powerful it was for myself. It was greater than I could've imagined." Yu said in awe, "I find it incredible that you were able to wield this kind of power all this time. Even … Even with that power, you've done your best for this group."

"Heh." Azumi chuckled as she moved back and leaned against the wall. Her hands rested on her outstretched knees as she looked towards the ceiling. "You know … I find it amazing how many years it has been since I first learned how to use a gun. You were still a baby when I learned."

"…" Yu remained silent as he listened intently to his sister's words.

"Father was 'reluctant' to say the least, but he still taught me. I wanted to help him protect you, mother, and everyone else." Azumi closed her eyes as she reminisced upon her own instruction. "The way you felt when you held that gun … I felt the same way when I learned. Even after all these years, I still remember that feeling I had." Azumi opened her eyes. "However, as time went on it became something more than a burden. Much more." 

"What did it become?" Yu broke his silence.

Azumi glanced toward her brother as she answered, "It became a means for protecting the people I cared about and surviving. The gun is powerful, but it is nothing without someone using it. Despite how dangerous it can be, the benefits far outweigh the burden."

"I see." Yu looked ahead as he replied, "That makes sense."

"Anyway, if you don't mind, could you keep our little lesson a secret from father?" Azumi stated, "I wouldn't want to give him something else to be upset about."

"Of course." Yu assured his sister. "I won't tell anyone."

"Good." Azumi stood up and brushed herself off. "Anyway, since we're here, we might as well do some more training. You up for a second round?"

"Heh." Yu stood up as well as he enthusiastically replied, "You bet I am!" His feet were sidestepping repeatedly left and right as if he was a boxer.

"All right then." Azumi walked to the center of the room and faced towards Yu before raising her fists. "Put'em up." Yu raised his fists as well to which she waved her hand to egg him on. "Now come at me." Afterwards, the two of them engaged in another training exercise.

/

While the Kannagi siblings were continuing their training session, their parents were having a discussion of their own. Kaede made sure she and Haru were alone before she began talking to him. The door was closed, and there was no one else in the room.

"I heard that Azumi gave you another report about the area." Kaede stated before she lightly bit her lip.

"She did." Haru remarked, "She warned us about a potential threat we might face."

"I also heard that she wasn't exactly given a warm reception upon her report." Kaede bitterly remarked.

"…" Haru was silent for a moment before asking, "Who told you that?"

"That doesn't matter." Kaede asked, "Is it true?"

"…" Haru hesitantly answered, "I did thank her for …"

"It's true!" Kaede concluded as she sharply stated, "It sounds like you've been having difficulties speaking with both our children."

"Hmm …" Haru could not reply to that.

"Why is it suddenly becoming harder for you?!" Kaede angrily asked, "I know you've been having difficulties, but things didn't seem too bad last year. Even a few months ago, you didn't have that much trouble. What happened to those days? It keeps getting worse and worse. You keep acting so cold to them. Why?"

Haru put his hand on his forehead and brushed through his hair as his mind thought back on the increasingly troubling conversations he had with his children. "This world is changing them or rather altering who they should be. It's altering them more and more every year."

"That's to be expected!" Kaede reminded her husband, "Azumi was still young before the Aragami appeared and Yu was born after that! This world is practically everything they've ever known!"

"I know! I know that!" Haru frustratingly remarked, "Trust me I do!"

"Then what's your problem!" Kaede raised her voice.

"They … They frighten me … Especially Azumi …" Haru admitted.

"Wha … What?" Kaede responded in disbelief.

"They … They are so ready and willing to kill … to decay …" Haru quickly corrected himself, "I can practically feel their morals decaying … It's frightening … Even when Azumi did handle the situation peacefully, I could feel that she would have rather kill them. I could feel she regretted sparing them."

"Dear … That's not the kind of people our children are." Kaede stated. "They don't go out trying to kill people."

"I know what happened the other day was self-defense." Haru clarified, "That part doesn't bother me. Not even close. I wish it did, but it's not. If it was, that'd be a different matter altogether."

"Then what is it exactly?" Kaede demanded.

"It's just … It's just the way they talk about how those men died …" Haru bitterly remarked, "They don't seem the least bit disturbed by it. I didn't realize it at first, but the more these 'confrontations' happened the more they appear to shrug it off like it was just another day."

"…"Kaede remained silent as she let her husband continue.

"Being able to kill without feeling anything even if its self-defense is a sign of moral decay." Haru stated, "If this keeps up, there's a chance they'll cross a line one day they'll never be able to come back from. If the line becomes so blurred how will they ever know where it is? How can we be expected to bring back society if we forget everything about it?"

"If that's how you felt, why didn't you do anything before?" Kaede then asked, "Why didn't you try discussing it with me or them?"

"It was something I noticed over …" Haru began to say.

"There is no excuse for this!" Kaede cut him off. "They're your children! If you're concerned about them, you should talk to them!" Kaede continued, "I can understand you've had difficulties. A lot of things have been stressing you out, and you're tired. I get it. I can understand the concerns you've had, but have you properly told this to either of your children?"

"I …" Haru hesitantly replied, "I have spoken with them both."

"Really? You ' **really** ' had conversations with them?" Kaede did not even attempt to mask her skepticism.

"What are you …?" Haru began to speak.

"It doesn't sound like you've had conversations with either of your children." Kaede pointedly cut her husband off again. "Because it sounds more like you had arguments with them rather than having a real conversation."

"…" Haru found himself incapable of responding. There was no denying those words.

Kaede began listing things off. "First you attempt to chastise Azumi who fires back at you. It's not like you were there when it happened. Then Yu defends his sister because he thinks you weren't being fair to her. Just so you know, Yu is still willing to talk to me because I actually listen to him. You're so judgmental of your daughter that you've failed to notice so much of what has been happening."

"Hmph …" Haru failed to form any words beyond that which gave his wife the opening to continue what she was saying.

"Don't forget. Azumi didn't come out unscathed." Kaede pointed out, "The doctor and I saw the marks on her throat. Whoever did that to her nearly killed her. You should have been more respectful to that. Attempting to grill her while her throat still hurt wasn't the best idea." Kaede bitterly admitted, "Not to mention, the fact that she was nearly killed should've been more important than her killing someone else."

"…" Haru had difficulty looking his wife in the eyes after that last part.

Kaede stated, "Sometimes I think you forget how to be a father."

"What?" Haru asked.

"You're a leader. You've been a good one for years because you never forgot how to be a police officer." Kaede sincerely praised her husband. "Many people would've been dead without you or they could've become like those people that threatened Yu. People follow you because you're a good person. You don't just give orders. You take action, and you go out on the field yourself rather than letting everyone else do the work. You do what you can to keep everyone's head on straight. Everyone respects you for it." Kaede's tone changed when she broached the other subject. "However, while you used to be good at leading, it's almost like you forget to how to act like a father, and that hurts Azumi and Yu more than anything."

"…" Haru took a few moments to let everything his wife said to sink in before sighing. "Then what should I do?"

Kaede instructed her husband, "You should try talking to your children not as their leader but as their father. Try telling them what you said to me and not put them on the defensive."

"How do you suggest I do that?" Haru commented, "I'm not so sure they'd be interested in having a 'converation' with me now."

"There is something else you could do to break the ice." Kaede replied.

Haru raised an eyebrow, "What would that be?"

Kaede suggested, "The next time Azumi and Yu go out on a scouting assignment you should go with them."

"Hmph." Haru sarcastically asked, "Is that supposed to be a bonding activity?"

"It would be the closest thing you've had to bonding activity for a while." From the tone in Kaede's voice, Haru could see that she was serious about her suggestion.

"…" Haru considered the idea for a few moments before replying, "She'd probably think I'm supervising her."

"Not unless you let her be in charge." Kaede suggested.

"Put her in charge?" Haru asked in dumbfounded tone.

"Why not?" Kaede stated, "You put her in charge of Yu and anyone else who goes with her. If you allow her to make decisions, she'll appreciate it. Not to mention, she might not think of you as being her 'supervisor.' Maybe she'll think you're her there as her father."

"Hmm … I don't know." To describe Haru as being hesitant would be putting it mildly.

"She's your best scout and scavenger, so it should be okay." Kaede stated, "If you do that, she might be more open to talking to you later, and I'm sure the same will be true for Yu."

"…" Haru was still not too sure about say in response.

"Don't forget what you always told them." Kaede recited the famous quote, "'What's past is prologue.' Just because things look bad doesn't mean you can't do anything now. Azumi and Yu live by those words. They believe in them. You've said and done a lot of things people believe in. Try to remember that."

"I would …" Haru stated, "I would never forget that."

Kaede replied, "Sometimes people need to be reminded of the past to set themselves straight."

"Ah huff." Haru took a breath before stating, "Guess I can't argue with that."

Kaede said, "Of course you can't."

"All right fine." Haru brushed his hand through his hair again, "You made your point. I'll give it a shot."

"Good." Kaede merely replied. The wheels were in motion.

/

"Heyah!" Yu cried out when he swung his arm in the air, but his sister moved out of the way, and he could hit nothing but air. Without saying a word, she held out her arm and shoved him to the ground with little effort. "Gah!" Yu cried out as he hit the ground.

"I think that'll be enough for today." Azumi held out her hand to pull Yu up. As Yu brushed himself off, Azumi praised him, "You're fighting is getting better Yu, but you've still got a long way to go."

"Heh." Yu chuckled, "It seems like I got a lifetime before I can catch up to you Sis."

"Try not to sweat it." Azumi cheerfully told her brother, "It took me a while before I could start getting the better of our old man."

Yu shook his head. "I just can't picture you losing a fight."

"That's because you saw the result rather than the work-in-process." Azumi remarked.

"What?" Yu tilted his head in confusion.

"Never mind." Azumi shook her head. "You're definitely making progress. If you keep this up, you might be as good as me someday."

"That's hard to believe." Yu glanced away.

Azumi placed her hands on her waist. "Try to look me in the eyes Yu." On Azumi's word, Yu looked at Azumi before she said, "It's possible as long as you don't give up. You got that?"

Yu answered, "I got that."

Azumi was satisfied with her brother's response. "All right then. Let's take a breather. We both could use that."

"Okay." Both Azumi and Yu leaned against the wall again. "You know … It's amazing how much things have changed."

"Hmph …" There was something that had been on Yu's mind for a while, so he finally spoke up, "Hey Sis."

"Yeah." Azumi glanced to her brother.

"Would you ever want to become a God Eater and fight Aragami?" Yu asked.

"What?" Azumi flatly responded. She was not entirely sure if she heard that question right.

"I asked," Yu repeated, "Would you want to become a God Eater?"

Azumi raised an eyebrow. "What brought this on?"

"Well we're heading to Fenrir and that's where God Eaters live right?" Yu further inquired, "And Aragami seemed to be the only things that scare you, so I want to know if you'd want to turn the tables on them?"

"…" Azumi was not entirely sure how to respond at first. Her wrist shook ever so slightly as she clenched her fingers together in an attempt to stop. "Ah huff …" It took a moment for her to ask, "You … You think the only thing I'm afraid of is Aragami?"

"Well yeah. I've seen how Aragami scare you. There's no shame in it." Yu could feel a shiver crawl up his spine which caused him to pull his legs into his chest. "Mmm … They scare the hell out of me too. You're just better at keeping it together than me."

"… Of course there isn't any shame." The thought of being in an Aragami's line of sight made Azumi cringe. "We've seen what they can do."

"I know right?" Yu bitterly remarked as he pulled he hugged his legs, "You'd … You'd have to be completely braindead not to be afraid of those things."

"No argument there." Azumi rubbed her hand on her forehead as she asked, "You really think those things are the only things that scare me?"

Yu let go of his legs as he asked, "Aren't they? I've never seen you be scared of anything else."

"Sometimes …" Azumi chose her next words carefully, "Fear isn't that obvious …"

"What do you mean?" Yu tilted his head again.

"…" Azumi straightened herself against the wall. "You'll … You'll understand more when you get older Yu."

"Oh …" Yu couldn't hide his disappointment.

"Sorry to disappoint you, but there are some things you're better off learning as you get older like I did." Azumi clarified, "There are always 'subtleties' to keep an eye out for. Some are harder to spot than others. Sometimes, they're almost impossible to notice. I miss the mark too, so there's no shame in that either. You got that?"

Yu replied, "Of course."

"Good. You always need to keep that in mind." Azumi informed her brother, "It'll help you out a lot when you talk to people when you get older."

"Okay … Wait!" Yu's eyes widened as he realized something. "Hold on! You didn't answer my question. Would you want to be a God Eater?"

"Hmm …" Azumi thought, _"Looks like we came back to it after all."_ She hesitantly replied, "… Maybe."

"Maybe?" Yu asked in curiosity.

Azumi explained, "I would like to be strong enough to be capable of fending off anything, but that doesn't mean I want to go looking for a fight. Not with Aragami anyway."

Unfortunately, Azumi's attempt fell flat as indicated by her brother's raised eyebrows. "Huh?"

Azumi expanded on her explanation. "I'm sure you know that God Eaters are sent to different parts of the country or the world to fight Aragami. They're not just going to defend their home." Azumi rubbed her temple as she told her brother, "I'm not sure I'd be onboard with taking them on even with one of those weapons."

"But they do protect people like you've always protected me and the group. Isn't that why some people like them so much?" Yu asked with a raised eyebrow.

Azumi sighed. "It's also the reason why people fear and hate them too."

"What?" Yu was surprised by the response.

"Don't be too surprised Yu." Azumi stood up and stepped away as she told him, "Some people get jealous of people who have what they don't have. In this case, that's power."

"Why would they …?" Yu began to ask.

Azumi cutoff her brother, "It's not too different than why people are afraid of Aragami."

"What?" Yu was taken aback by his sister's strange statement. "How is that possible? It's not like God Eaters eat people. People don't eat other people right?"

"Um …" Azumi lightly bit her lip.

"They … They don't right?" Yu nervously asked.

Azumi shook her head and hands. "That's not what I meant." Azumi tried to get the conversation back on track by following up with, "What I meant was that people are afraid of Aragami's power. The Aragami eat us because they find us delicious, but they are able to eat us because we have 'no power' to stop them. They're big, strong, and almost nothing can hurt them. The only thing we can do is hide and run. There aren't any other choices."

"…" Yu had no response to that.

Azumi crossed her arms as her back leaned further against the wall. "If God Eaters are as strong as I hear, it's no wonder people would be afraid of them too."

"I wouldn't be afraid of you Sis." Yu assured his sister, "I know you'd do the right thing." 

Azumi smiled at her brother's statement as she told him, "At least I know I could count on your support."

"So …" Yu sheepishly scratched the back of his head, "I guess that means you wouldn't want to be a God Eater then?

"I didn't say that. I'm … mmm …" Azumi appeared to be in deep thought before she answered, "more on the fence. I can see both good and bad to becoming one.

"Ah. Fair enough." Yu replied.

"Don't forget our words Yu." Azumi recited, "'What's past is prologue.'"

"We can't change the past, but we can change the present right?" Yu asked.

"That's right. We focus on getting to Fenrir alive, and then we do the best we can with what we get when get there." Azumi saw Yu nod at her words. She then could feel a yawn coming as she told her brother, "Anyway, I'm gonna turn in early if you don't mind."

"No I don't mind." Yu told his sister, "Go right ahead."

"See you tomorrow." Azumi then walked away to her bed.

/

After Azumi excused herself, Yu decided to pay a visit to the garage and saw Minato hard at work. Minato turned his head to see Yu standing there as he turned off his equipment. He asked, "You here to check up on my progress with your sister's weapon too?"

"That's one reason, but I'm actually curious about a few other things." Yu answered.

"Oh?" Minato raised an eyebrow, "Curious are you?"

"I don't usually talk to you besides when I'm with Sis, but I also know you've been our mechanic for a while." Yu explained, "Since I've been trying to do more for the group, I'd like to know more about what you do."

"Hmm …" Minato considered Yu's words before turning his whole body and giving Yu his undivided attention. "Okay. Ask away."

"What kind of weapons can you forge?" Yu inquired, "Did your father teach you that?"

"Sort of …" Minato explained, "You see my father liked to produce weapons mostly for display purposes."

"Display?" Yu raised an eyebrow at the word. "You mean just show and not actually use them?"

"That's what he told me." Minato answered.

Wrinkles on Yu's forehead were visible as he scratched his chin and tried to understand. "Would someone want to just show off a weapon and not use it?"

"No idea." Minato shrugged, "I guess that's just how things were like back then."

"That just sounds so weird." Yu replied.

"I know right." Minato stated. "Using weapons for fighting is what they're meant for. Not for showing off."

Yu scratched his chin as he contemplated, "If what he did is weird for us, I wonder how weird it was for your father to make weapons that people needed to fight with."

"I wouldn't know." Minato shrugged again. "By the time he took me on as his apprentice, he seemed to be really into it by then."

Yu replied. "I see. So … when we get to Fenrir, do you think you'd want to help develop weapons for the God Eaters?"

"Well …" Minato considered his answer. "I've never been much of a fighter, and I doubt they'd want their 'refugees' to just sit around. They'd want me to pull my weight. I guess getting some kind of supporting role would be what I should be hoping for."

"What about the God Eater weapons?" Yu repeated his question, "Would you want to make them?"

"Hmm …" Minato's thought about his answer. "To be honest, I would be very curious about those weapons. I'd definitely be interested in finding out what makes them tick and what goes into making them. It's only a matter of whether they'd want to take the time to train me."

"Wouldn't they?" Yu raised an eyebrow. "Wouldn't they want as many people capable of forging weapons?"

"You'd think so, but I'm an outsider." Minato explained, "They might not be so willing to sharing those kind of secrets with me." He shrugged, "Not for a while anyway."

"Hmm … That's a good point." Yu replied, "It could take a while before they'd even trust you to look at things."

"Exactly." Minato casually remarked, "Worse come to worse, I can always help out with their vehicles. I'm pretty good with that to. They might be willing to at least let me do that at least."

Yu stated. "That's true."

"Hmm. Hmph." Minato proudly remarked, "Always good to have a fallback plan."

/

The wheels that Kaede had set in motion were far from the only wheels. The bald bandit had returned to his hideout and was speaking with the leader of his own group. He shared the details of the encounter earlier that day. The moment he mentioned the identity of the one responsible for killing her men the other day, she looked as if her head was about to erupt like a volcano.

"What did you just say?" The leader bitterly asked her subordinate.

"Based on the situation Etsuko-sama," the bald bandit began to reiterate, "I believe it would be best to let …"

"Let her go?" The wrinkle marks in Etsuko's forehead were become more visible as she continued to raise her voice, "After what she did to Gorou, Hachiro, Hiroki, and Ayumu?"

The bald bandit tried to futilely reason with his leader, "Considering what happened, I do believe that would be the best thing to do. We won't lose any more if we let it end here."

Etsuko began nursing her head as he began to speak again. "Okay … Okay … Let me see if I'm processing this correctly. This scar faced girl shoots the brains out of Gorou, slashed Hachiro's throat, stabbed Hiroki in the stomach and neck, and bashed Ayumu's head in." There was barely anything retaining her rage. She was ready to burst. "She did all that, and you want to let her go?"

The bald bandit replied, "In her defense, they held her brother hostage, and they attacked first."

"Why should that matter?!" Etsuko sharply asked. "She killed our men! Whether she had reason to kill them or not is beside the point! Besides, do you actually believe her?"

"She struck me as a very honest girl." The bald bandit replied.

"Oh really?" Etsuko sarcastically remarked with narrow eyes.

"Yes." The bald bandit stated, "Not to mention what she said coincides with Gorou's rather 'unfortunate' behavior. He never had much brains before they ended up on that wall."

Etsuko crossed her arms as she remarked, "Whether you believe her or not doesn't matter. She killed four of our men. Seven if you include what happened after which I do."

"Those three were eaten by Aragami. They weren't killed by her." The bald bandit pointed out.

"Our men heard the gunshot and so did the Aragami." Etsuko justified.

The bald bandit remarked, "I don't believe it's fair to blame her for that."

"That doesn't matter." Etsuko declared, "She **has** to pay the price. She **will** pay the price. You will see to it personally."

"…" The bald bandit could see there was no getting past this as he reluctantly replied, "Fine. Then what do you propose we do? Tracking her down might not be easy."

Etsuko inquired, "Didn't you have someone follow her?"

"Of course I did." The bald bandit informed his leader, "However, my scout had a difficult time keeping track of her. Apparently she and her brother were a little more slippery than he anticipated. Our men did fail to take them by surprise before, so they were extra cautious. They made a couple of circles. When he tried to pick up the trail again an Aragami appeared, so he fled. Trying to find their camp will be easier said than done."

"Then we'll do the next best thing." Etsuko asked, "From what you could tell she was scavenging right?"

"Yes, but that doesn't exactly narrow things down." The bald bandit dryly remarked.

"No, but we do know at least two places she's been, so we can eliminate those." Etsuko considered the facts. "Since we've never encountered a girl matching her description before, she's most likely part of a nomadic group. They'll have to gather supplies from key locations. We'll have groups stationed at these places, and we'll find out if she enters one."

"Very well, but I should warn you. This isn't going to end well. She has a gun, and she is skilled at fighting." The bald bandit gave his final warning, "This is just going to get more people killed."

Etsuko remained unmoved. "Not ours. Now get everyone ready for the job."

"Yes Etsuko-sama." The bald bandit respectfully bowed.

Before her bald subordinate could take his leave, Etsuko spoke up, "One more thing before you go. If you can, be sure to bring her back to me alive. I want to put her head fresh on a pike myself."

"Understood." The bald bandit then asked, "What should I do with anyone else who might be accompanying her? I'm sure her brother might be with her. He's just a kid."

"Hmm … Do what you want with them." Etsuko responded with a shrug. "I don't care. I just want you to bring her." The leader suggested, "If you want, you can even give them a front row seat. I'm sure that'll be exciting." Estuko grinned at the thought.

"… Very well." The bald bandit hesitantly replied before taking his leave.

When she was by herself, Etsuko looked upon her room as she said to herself, "You're days are numbered scar face. Just like theirs were." Etsuko was looking upon a room decorated with the rotting heads of her enemies on pikes. All of their eyes once brimming with life had long been extinguished. The sounds of flies buzzing around could be heard echoing throughout the room consuming what was left.

/

 **Author Notes** : As you can see, Azumi cannot seem to win when it comes to her decisions even when she does her best to end things peacefully. In a world that has decayed, trying to do the right thing or the person's definition of the right thing is difficult to accomplish. However, that can be true for anyone regardless of what world you live in. Sometimes there is just no pleasing someone despite your best efforts.

Having Azumi and Yu have an encounter with the friends of the bandits that attacked them was one of the first things I planned. Unfortunately, her actions lead to other problems even though she and her brother could have probably been killed if she didn't take those actions in the first place. Another example of how Azumi just can't win besides earning the respect and admiration of her brother and other people of the younger generation.

As usual, the bond between Azumi and Yu is a major theme in this story. Yu follows Azumi's lead, but he isn't afraid to question things either. He personally thinks his father is a terrible leader and father, but he respects what Azumi thinks because he knows that Azumi knows more of the details. A part of him also understands that he'd probably have more respect for his father if he knew him as long as Azumi did.

In regards to Haru's 'leadership' abilities that most of you found questionable, it was always my plan to make it clear that more than a few people in the story find it questionable at best. As you can see, they have mixed to negative feelings regarding his abilities. However, their general consensus is that they think he was once a good leader but not so much now. Sometimes it is better to step down after a while and possibly leave yourself open to taking up the sword again someday if needed rather than decaying.

I hope you enjoyed reading the new chapter, and I would greatly appreciate feedback.


	4. Consequences

**Author Notes** : It has been a long time since I updated this story. Sorry for the extended hiatus. Real life can get in the way of things unfortunately. Not to mention, there are other stories I'm writing as well. However, it was always my intention to write more content for this, and now I have produced a new chapter for this story. It is about time.

I decided to publish this chapter because it has been a year since God Eater Resurrection was launched in the West, and it has also been a year since I released the first chapter of this story. I like to release chapters of my active stories on or around the anniversary of their debuts. It is always good to celebrate the occasion with new content. It also helps provide me with motivation to continue working on the story or rebooting my efforts to producing chapters.

It is great that the consensus of this story has been positive. I'm proud of that. I also know that this story isn't exactly 'God Eater' like since it is normal people or 'currently normal people' surviving in the post-apocalyptic environment which makes it seem more like "The Last of Us". I personally think that is a good thing, and there are reasons for that.

As a reminder, the initial idea for this story was to give a perspective of normal people unable to defend themselves against the Aragami. As we saw in the tenth episode of the God Eater anime, they need to struggle to survive and avoid the Aragami at all costs. I also previously mentioned as with all post-apocalyptic material, including God Eater, they'll be plenty of messed up people to deal with. It is a fact of life or rather fiction.

My intention is to continue producing more content for this story in the future. This story has been a lot of fun write and plan. It has been like putting the pieces of a puzzle together. There are scenes that I'm looking forward to publishing one day, and you can bet it will involve dealing with the Aragami in one way or another. I'm sure we can all look forward to that.

Once again, I do apologized for the prolonged hiatus. I hope you'll enjoy reading the chapter and provide a review. I'd greatly appreciate the feedback.

/

Past is Prologue

Story Arc One – Surviving in the Wild – Part IV

Chapter Four – Right, Wrong, and Gray Part III – Consequences

/

A simple lesson

Actions have consequences

Never forget that

/

 **Location: Japan**

 **Date: July 3** **rd** **, 2068 – Afternoon**

After speaking with his wife, Kannagi Haru decided that he would join his children on one of their scouting expeditions rather than leading one on his own. When he spoke with his children about joining them on their next expedition, they were 'reluctant' to form a group with him. It took his wife's assistance to make this possible. He agreed to let Azumi take the lead, and he trusted her to hold the gun. He would only act as an 'advisor' when they went out together.

In addition to the gun and knife, Haru noticed that Azumi had a different weapon on her than usual. According to her, it was a spear that was retractable. It was made by Minato specifically for her. She wasn't used to handling it yet, but she figured she could start by carrying it around. Haru decided it would be for the best not to question it.

While they made their way to one part of the city in an attempt to obtain more fuel for their trucks, another group led by one of Haru's most trusted subordinates would do their best to do the same. Kannagi Haru would be the one holding the gas container while his children wore their normal backpacks. Unfortunately, this task would be easier said than done.

There weren't many cars left remotely intact in the city. They either wasted away or the Aragami might've decided to eat them in hopes of satisfying their never-ending hunger. The best they were able to retrieve was a few drops here and there from some of the cars they could find. Unfortunately, it was far from the amount they were hoping for. Their best hope was to look in a tower that loomed before them. It was about twenty floors high, and their father stated there is a slim chance oil or other types of fuel could have been stored there. Azumi was fine with checking out the building on Haru's suggestion.

The trio remained silent throughout most of their journey through the decaying city. Azumi and Yu would occasionally exchange a look before pressing on. It wasn't until they were inside the building they finally decided to have a conversation that would last longer than a sentence.

When Yu looked over his shoulder, he was the one to ask, "Did you really want to keep an eye on us father?"

"…" Haru did briefly glanced away from his son before he answered, "That wasn't exactly my intention, but you two did go out into the field a little sooner than the doctor recommended. You didn't exactly receive the go ahead."

"I know my body well father." Azumi remained calm with her arms crossed as she replied, "I wouldn't have gone out if I didn't believe I could handle it."

"Well …" Their father was slightly hesitant before replying, "Be that as it may, I actually would've asked to accompany you even if you didn't go out before."

Azumi raised an eyebrow, "Oh?"

"We …" Haru scratched his head as he stated, "… haven't exactly spent a lot of time together lately so I decided it might be a good idea to accompany you on one of the scouting trips."

"Hmph." Azumi amusingly retorted, "I guess we didn't exactly have a lot of choices when it came to family bonding."

"…" Their father looked at their surroundings before he looked back at his daughter as he lamentedly admitted, "As much as I hate to say it, you're right about that. Here's hoping things can change when we get to Fenrir."

"Do you really think things can be different?" Azumi skeptically asked. "A lot of other places haven't really worked out, and we'd need to go on the road again."

"I'm sure this'll be different." Haru assuredly replied. "Fenrir has apparently remained standing ever since this began. I'm sure it'll remain standing."

"…" Yu remained silent as he looked between the two.

Azumi placed her hand on her waist as she asked, "Let's say it is still there. How much further do you think it is?"

"We're making good time." Haru smiled as he optimistically told his daughter, "At the rate we're going, we'll probably be there in a few weeks to two months at the most."

Azumi crossed her arms as she remarked, "Sounds like we still got a ways to go."

"It is unfortunately …" Their father noticed something out of the corner of his eyes. He turned around to walk towards it. He continued to speak while walking towards his target. "However, if this was how it used to be, we wouldn't be traveling in a group or need to make as many stops nor …" Their father bent down to examine the desk, "would we need worry about Aragami."

"…" Yu remained silent. He had no idea how to contribute to the conversation as he kept shifting his attention between his father and sister.

Haru continued to examine the desk as he continued, "It probably would've taken only a day or two if it was like before, but the stops do add up."

"Don't worry." Azumi replied, "I get it. I just hope we don't have run out of supplies, even after all the scavenging we've done."

"Heh." Haru playfully remarked as he picked up an item, "If you think you're worried, try being the one in charge." Haru tossed his daughter the item.

"I'd rather not." Azumi could feel herself chuckle a little as she caught it. It appeared to be an old wristwatch that was still in good condition. Azumi decided to put it away in her backpack.

"…" Yu remained completely silent throughout the exchange. It was as if he wasn't there.

Azumi then looked at her brother and asked, "Is something wrong Yu?"

"No." Yu answered. "Why?"

"It's just you looked a little troubled." Azumi took a step forward and kneeled in front of him. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah. I'm fine. We should try getting back to …" Yu awkwardly reply, "… you know … savaging for stuff." Yu then walked over to some

"Okay …" Azumi turned to her father and said, "Is there a reason why you thought this building was promising."

"There might be a garage underneath this building." Haru explained. "A lot of people would go to work in buildings like this, and they'd have garages underneath them. There would usually be a stairwell that would take us down there."

"You think it won't be blocked by rubble or something?" Azumi inquired.

"We'll have to find out." Haru noticed a sign. He snapped his fingers and pointed to the sign, "Bingo. That's what we're looking for. Follow me." Azumi and Yu followed after their father down the hallway. At the end they reached a door that luckily for them was not blocked.

When Haru grabbed hold of the door, it was difficult to make it move at first. Azumi stood up next to him while Yu remained a lookout. There might not have been much to keep an eye on, but his eyes darted from spot to spot.

"Grrh!" Both father and daughter groaned as they used their strength and struggled to move to door until it suddenly burst open from the force. It was so sudden that it nearly caused both Azumi and Haru to lose their balance.

"Ah!" Azumi let out a cry as she nearly fell over.

"Are you okay Azumi?" Yu ran over and asked.

"…" Haru remained silent after hearing Yu's question.

"I'm fine." Azumi then looked down the stairs as she remarked, "Just a little surprised."

The trio made their way down the stairs. Each step they made could be heard echoing in the stairwell. They held onto either the railing of the wall as they made each step. When they reached the bottom, the garage was surprisingly intact. There were several cracks in the pavement and there were ruins blocking another possible exit to the surface. However, aside from that, everything appeared to be fine. The pillars were holding up, and they had a feeling they wouldn't need to worry about the garage collapsing anytime soon.

They looked around the garage to see several cars scattered around the area. Haru's face brightened up at the sight of them as he commented, "Hah. Looks like this might be our lucky day after all."

Azumi closed her eyes and put her hand on her forehead as she remarked in a dry tone, "Don't jinx it."

"Sorry." Haru sheepishly replied. "Let's hope they still have some gas leftover."

Haru used the gas can, pump, and hose he brought with him to retrieve gas from the car tanks. After a few tries, he was successful in finding one or two cars with a sufficient supply of gas. He was able to fill up the gas can to capacity.

As Haru filled the gas can, Azumi and Yu remained on watched. Neither of them decided to talk on the side. They remained focused on their surroundings. Nothing came their way while Haru was retrieving the gas.

"All right." Haru held the gas can in his hand and shook it. The trio could hear the liquid move around. He could feel the weight of the liquid and how it moved in the container as he remarked, "I think that'll do it."

"You really think that'll be enough for us to get to Fenrir?" Azumi inquired.

"Maybe." Haru held the gas can handle tightly as he told his daughter, "If the other team retrieved some gas as well, it should be enough for us to get there even if we have to take any Aragami detours."

"If you say so." Azumi remarked.

"I do." Haru said back.

"In that case, let's get going before …" Azumi began to speak until a strange sound from behind her caused her to trail off. She turned around and jumped back to put her hand on her weapon to see where it was coming from.

 **Tap! Tap! Tap!**

The sound originated from the stairwell they had used to get down to the garage. Azumi, Haru, and Yu could feel the hair on the back of their heads stand up as they waited to see who would be appearing from that stairwell. They could hear that each step sounded closer.

All three family members put their bags to the side before reaching for their weapons. Azumi legs were slightly bent as she had her gun ready to shot at a moment's notice. She held the gun with her right hand while her left hand was free. Yu crouched as he pulled out his knife. Haru placed the gas can by the car he retrieved the new supply from and pulled out his knife as well. They were as ready as they could be for what was coming.

From the shadows of the stairwell, emerged a face that Azumi was familiar with. Azumi took a step back as she remarked, "… You."

It was none other than the Bald Bandit she had struck a deal with before, and he had brought far more company with him than he previously had. It was well over a dozen. "Looks like we meet again gunslinger."

The space between Azumi's eyebrows narrowed as she angrily demanded, "What are you doing here?! I thought we had an understanding!" She had her gun pointed directly at the bandit.

"Well it came to an end." The Bald Bandit reminded the young girl, "What'd I tell you about meeting again?"

"I didn't come looking for you!" Azumi rhetorically asked, "You came here looking for us weren't you?"

"Half right." The Bald Bandit's group began to fan out. Azumi remained focused on the front while Yu and Haru looked at the spread of the Bald Bandit's forces. The Bald Bandit pointed directly at Azumi as he informed her, "We only came looking for you."

Haru's eyes widened and his voice deepened. "What?"

The Bald Bandit stopped pointing at Azumi and moved his hand toward the scabbard on his belt. "I'll make this nice and easy. Come with us quietly," he slightly pulled his sword from his scabbard before finishing his offer, "and we'll pretend we didn't see these two."

"Wha …" Yu's voice quivered slightly as he demanded, "What would you do to her?"

"Hmph." The Bald Bandit glanced at the boy as he casually addressed him, "That won't be any of your business little man."

"Like hell it isn't." Haru stepped in front of his daughter and put his hand on his chest and declared, "I'm her father. Her safety is my responsibility, and I refuse to let her go off with you or anyone."

"Yeah!" Yu held out his knife and pointed it at the Bald Bandit. "No way are we just going to let you take my sister!"

"Oh. So this is a family affair?" The bandit scratched his chin as a grin formed on his face, "How very interesting."

"Don't even think about it!" Azumi stepped in front as she continued to hold her gun and told the bandit, "You must think I'm crazy if you think I'd go with you! You're just going to kill me!"

The Bald Bandit pointed his sword in Azumi's direction as he asked, "Wouldn't you want to spare your brother and father?"

Azumi remained unwavering as she pointed out, "You already broke one promise you made to me! What makes you think I'd believe you now?!"

"Well …" The Bald Bandit lightly scratched his chin as he had difficulty coming up with an answer, "… that is a very good question. A very good question indeed."

"Did you really think this whole thing through? You do realize I still have a gun right?" Azumi's aim remained pointed toward the Bald Bandit's head. Her finger curled around the trigger. "I'm sure you know what's faster."

"Yeah. I do." The Bald Bandit didn't seem too intimidated this time. I also noticed you didn't pull the trigger yet."

Azumi raised an eyebrow. "So?"

The Bald Bandit surmised, "I bet you don't want to risk attracting Aragami."

"…" Azumi did not say a word in response.

"Looks like I was right." The Bald Bandit took a step towards Azumi as he told her, "We're all better for it anyway. There's no need for all of us to die."

"Someone is." Azumi pointed her gun away from the bandit and pulled the trigger.

 **Bang!**

Azumi fired her gun and her hand moved back due to the recoil. A loud bang echoed in the garage and the connecting stairwell. Azumi could only hope there wasn't an Aragami anywhere near them. They didn't see any Aragami during their exploration, but there was always a chance one could have wandered nearby. Regardless, Azumi still pulled the trigger without hesitation.

No one could react to what she did. The bullet flew faster at its target than any of them could comprehend. They could only see and react after it finished its work.

The bullet broke through one of the male bandit's forehead. It traveled through his brain and broke out on the other side of his skull. Everyone could see the bandit's head jerk back before falling to the ground on his back. Blood could be seen slowly pouring from the hole on his forehead and a buddle of blood was accumulated on the floor beneath his head. His now lifeless eyes staring up into space was unable to open or close on their own again.

Everyone in the room except Azumi and Yu were stunned in silence and left with open mouths.

"Wha …" The Bald Bandit head turned with widened eyes to see that one of his fellows was now lying lifelessly on the ground.

Haru looked down at the handiwork of his daughter. He was not sure how to react to this. Part of him wished he had brought a gun as well while another part had wished he had been holding the gun instead. His right foot reflexively took a step back before he moved that foot forward again.

Azumi's eyes were narrow as she pointed the gun for the Bald Bandit. "When I pull out my gun, I don't do it for show." Azumi curled her finger around the trigger once more as her voice grew darker and deeper. "I'll pull the trigger when I have to. When I pull the trigger, I kill." When the Bald Bandit stared in Azumi's eyes, he couldn't focus on her gun because he felt as if daggers were stabbing him.

"…" All eyes in the room were on Azumi. No one had the ability to say a word to her as she continued to speak.

Wrinkles were forming on Rei's forehead as she bluntly told the bandits, "We had a deal. You broke it, and you needed to pay." She then loudly directed the Bald Bandit, "Call your men off now! You all stay down here, and you let us walk up those stairs! We DON'T need to repeat this!"

"…" There was not response from the Bald Bandit other than gritted teeth.

Azumi's eyes remained narrowed. "Don't look at me like that. You …" Azumi's hears perked up from a sound.

 **Tap! Tap! Tap!**

Azumi could hear the sound of footsteps coming from behind her. She turned to see that a female bandit was heading for her, and she clearly did not care whether Azumi had a gun or not. Azumi turned around and pointed her gun straight at the oncoming bandit.

 **Bang!**

Azumi did not hesitate to pull the trigger again. It ended in the same result of the bullet entering through the bandit's head and exiting the other side. No one paid attention to see the bandit's head jerk back before she feel to the ground. What Azumi heard next was what got her attention.

"Kill them! Kill them all!" Azumi heard the shouts from one of the other bandits. Azumi, Haru, and Yu looked around them to see all the bandits were converging on them, including the Bald Bandit.

"You dumbasses!" Azumi shouted, "Yu! Father! Let's move!" Azumi rushed toward the bandits behind them and away from the Bald Bandit. She held up her gun and pulled the trigger multiple times.

 **Bang! Bang! Bang!**

"GAH!" One of the bandits cried out upon getting hit in the shoulder as he fell to the ground on his knees. The other two bandits were not as lucky as him.

The downed bandit turned his head to the gunslinger only to see a boot heading to his face. He could feel the boot make an indentation on his head as the boot dug in. It was only for a moment, but he could feel his cheekbones cave into the sudden assault before snapping. The kick forced his head to move and his body to twist around before he then fell flat on his stomach. His vision had blacked out before his face touched the ground.

The family hid behind the car, and the remaining bandits had found hiding places of their own behind other cars in the slowly decaying parking lot. Before anyone else could speak, Haru tried to speak up, "This doesn't have to get any worse than it already is!" He did his best to reason with them as his voice carried over throughout the garage. "Your friend down there should still be alive! You can still save him! No one else has to die! All you need to do is let us go, and we never meet again!"

"Can't do that old man!" The voice of the Bald Bandit could be heard. "No one can do that now!" He then added "Sorry!"

"Not as sorry as you're all gonna be!" Azumi shouted back.

"Azumi!" Haru touched his daughter's arm from behind.

"Sorry father!" Azumi spoke without looking at her father. "You just did things your way! Now I need to do them my way!" Azumi peered over the top of the car to scan the area for where the bandits were hiding. She shouted, "You do realize you've screwed up right?! The fact you decide to attack us means I can't let any of you live? You brought this on yourselves!"

"…" Haru remained silent as he heard his daughter speak.

"Well I didn't exactly come here to die today." The Bald Bandit calmly replied. However, Rei could guess where his voice was coming from.

Azumi shouted out loud, "One of us are, and I can guarantee you that this isn't going to be my grave!"

"Hmph." The Bald Bandit replied, "Less talk more fighting."

"I couldn't agree more …" Azumi saw from the corner of her eye one of the bandits had a knife in his hand, and he was ready to throw it. Before he could throw it her way, Azumi turned her body and pulled the trigger.

 **Bang!**

"Gah!" The bullet didn't go through the bandit's head like it did for the others. It cut through the man's jugular. "GAH! GAH!" Azumi saw the man attempted to cover his wound as he fell to his knees and began to choke. "GAH!" Red liquid began to escape from his lips. The man was not only bleeding from his throat, but he was choking blood as well.

"Grh … Grh …" Azumi could still hear the sounds of the man choking as she kneeled down to hide behind the car again.

"Damn!" Azumi shook her head as she heard the choking sounds literally die down.

"Azumi." Haru whispered to his daughter as he remained kneeling, "I know that gun gives us an edge in this, but the more you use it the more we're tempting the Aragami showing up. We should probably use our other weapons."

"I know that!" Azumi sharply said to her father in a low voice. "I wasn't planning on using it the whole time." Azumi opened the clip of her gun to see she was nearly out. She put the gun back together. "It's not like I have a lot left anyway." Azumi placed the gun back in her holster and pulled out her knife. "Besides, I think I killed enough of them with this. We should be able to handle the rest of them."

Yu silently nodded in agreement.

Haru sighed and reluctantly remarked, "Guess we don't have much of a choice." He held up his own weapon as well.

Azumi looked to see a piece of loose concrete by her feet. She quickly grabbed the rock and shook it loose before pulling it free. The sudden freedom of the rock nearly caused Azumi to lose her balance from her kneeling position. She then held the rock firmly in her hand.

No one else had apparently moved their hiding spots. It was a matter of who would make the first move. Azumi held onto the rock with her right hand and her knife with her left. As she laid in wait for the right moment, Azumi lightly bit her lip. It was not enough for her to draw blood, but it kept her mind from wandering.

 **Tap!**

Azumi's ears perked when she heard the sound of a footstep. It was coming from out of her view. She quietly moved across the car. When she peered up, she could see another bandit slowly making her way towards them.

"Ah huff …" Azumi took a deep breath. She quietly told her family, "Get ready!"

When Yu nodded his head, it was enough for Azumi to go on. She jumped from hiding with the rock in hand. She threw it with all her might.

The bandit did not see the rock coming until it was inches from her face. The best she could do was widen her eyes before impact. The rock came into contact with was the female bandit's nose. The woman could feel her nose being forced back into her head as the rock impacted the rest of her face. The force of the rock and Azumi's throw caused the female bandit's head and neck to jerk back, and her back craned back as well. However, unlike the bandit that Azumi shot, the rock headshot was not enough to kill her.

When the bandit attempted to stand up straight, Azumi could see that the female bandit's nose was leaking like a faucet. The right side of her face was roughly cut, and her right eye was showing signs of becoming black and blue. She was not ready for what was coming next as Azumi launched her foot into the female bandit's stomach. The female bandit's mouth went agape as the foot dug into her body and the air escaped from her lungs. The force of the attack knocked her off her feet as she fell to the ground, and her back roughly landed on the surface.

After seeing this, the Bald Bandit shouted, "She must be out of bullets! Get her now!"

The remaining bandits jumped from their hiding places and launched their attack. Afterwards, chaos ensued. Azumi, Haru, and Yu were forced to fight the bandits on their own. However, Azumi had thinned their numbers greatly, so it was manageable. Azumi made sure to keep a good eye on her brother when she was able to.

Handling several of the bandits was mere child's play for Azumi. She had easily managed to fake out and slice the throats of two different bandits before another one tried to attack her from behind. Azumi's ears perked when she heard the sound of someone crying out behind her which dwarfed the sound of his loud footsteps.

The bandit held a club in his hand. When he was about to attack, he bent his knee and attempted to swing his weapon to whack Azumi's head like it was a baseball. Azumi saw him coming, and she was able to easily dodge underneath his swing. When he hit nothing but air, he swung so widely it left him unbalanced and open for a counter attack. Azumi used her foot to kick her opponent's knee. She could feel and hear an audible crack as she forced the knee to move in the opposite direction he had been pointing it.

"GRH!" The bandit cried out as he was forced on one knee. "Wha ..!" The man was barely able to react to Azumi foot before it collided with his face.

Azumi could feel her force the man's head back which forced his back to move along with it. In a moment, the man was no longer able to keep his balance after being forced back from the kick and landed on the ground. The man was not dead, but Azumi was sure he was out cold. However, Azumi did not have the luxury of being able to check.

No sooner had she knocked that bandit to the floor, two more bandits were heading her way. One of them was the Bald Bandit ready to swing his sword and the other bandit was a club wielder as well. When Azumi saw the sword, she could feel her eyes widen and her heart skip a beat as she held up her knife.

The swing of the sword was too strong for Azumi to stop with her tiny blade. The best she could do was deflect the swing as her back bent backwards slightly. Azumi could see the sword swing over her head within inches of her face as her feet did their best to remain on the ground while her body had bent backwards.

Within a second or two, Azumi forced her back straight up again. Before she could try counterattacking the Bald Bandit, Azumi saw the other bandit was doing a follow up attack. He swung his club straight down to Azumi's head as if he was trying to hit the head of a nail. Azumi managed to jump to the right, but the club was able to lightly hit her arm. The strike left a black and blue mark on her arm, but it wasn't enough to cause her to drop her knife or deter her in anyway.

Ignoring the pain Azumi quickly bent down and counterattacked the bandit as she kicked out her leg and struck his feet. The pressure and strength of her right leg on the bandit's ankles was enough to cause him to fall forward and timber like a tree. The man didn't have a chance to cry out before he fell flat on his face other than groan in pain.

Azumi immediately stood up straight and then proceeded to kick the bandit's head like she was doing a kickoff at an American football game. The bandit had been trying to push his body up which made him an easier target before he could feel his head make contact with her foot. This caused the bandit's body to rollover and land on his back. His head remained limp on the ground with his mouth agape along with blood protruding from his nose and mouth, but Azumi was sure he was still alive.

The Bald Bandit was not going to let that go unanswered as he gritted his teeth and attempted to attack Azumi again. His swing was wild, and Azumi was able to dodge it with ease. "Ha." Azumi laughed. "Is this a joke?"

"…" The Bald Bandit didn't say a word as he continued to hit nothing but air with Azumi.

Azumi smirked as she remarked, "This is pathetic." The Bald Bandit's movement became wilder as she continued to speak. Her grin grew wider as she told him, "How can you be a leader of these guys? You suck!"

"Ah!" The Bald Bandit cried out as he swung for Azumi's neck. She easily dodged underneath his attack and spun around with a kick that launched for his stomach. "GAH!" The Bald Bandit cried out as Azumi's foot dug into his body and launched him away from her.

"Ha." With another enemy defeated, Azumi couldn't help but brag. "You guys can't take me on your own. You're too weak."

 **Heyah!**

As if on cue to fit her words, Azumi ears perked up to see that her little brother was in the middle of his own fight. Azumi could see a few bandit bodies by where her brother was fighting. He was clashing furiously with one that appeared to have the fury of Hades in his eyes. However, Yu was overpowering her with little difficulty, but that was not what caused Azumi's eyes to widen.

There was another bandit heading for Yu. He easily dwarfed him and her in size. "Yu!" Azumi's eyes widened as she saw one of the bandits raising his knife towards Yu whose attention was completely occupied by the bandit he was currently dealing with.

Without wasting a second thought, Azumi tossed the knife up and caught it by blade in midair. She pulled her arm back and threw the knife she was holding. She saw the knife spin in the air as if it was in slow motion. It hurdled toward the target before hitting him in the back like he was a bullseye. If anyone had watched Azumi throw that, they would've thought she had practiced this by playing with darts at a bar.

"GAH!" The bandit cried out as he felt the sharp edge of the knife pierce through the skin in his back. He could feel it break through until it became imbedded in him causing him further anguish.

The cries caught Yu's attention. He didn't need anything else to tell him what was going on. He finished off his current opponent and then he immediately stabbed the large man in the gut before withdrawing the knife.

With the knife lodged in his back and a wound on his stomach, the bandit's shirt quickly became stained with blood. It caused him to lose his balance as his legs gave way and his back continued to lean forward even as he tried to use his hands and knees to support himself. He was now low enough for Yu to finish off.

When the bandit looked up, he could see what his fate was. Yu was swift and decisive. With his knife, he cut through the bandit's long and vulnerable neck. Yu could feel his knife easily break through the meaty skin and cut through it like butter. The move took only a second or two to execute, but it played in slow motion in Yu's head as blood covered his knife. It began to rip down the man's neck and body like a waterfall. The man fell forward. Yu bent down to retrieve the knife from his back and left him to rot away.

Yu saw that his sister was dealing with her own problems, but he didn't feel the need to worry about her. His attention turned to his father who had far more active opponents than either of them. Yu's eyes widened by what he saw.

While Haru was handling himself well as indicated by the bodies presently on the ground, Yu saw that one of the bandits took a page out of Azumi's book. She was about to bash his head with a rock. Yu cried out, "Father!" as he rushed over to his side. Yu was not able to warn his father in time nor was he able to stop the rock from hitting the back of his father's head, but he was able to stop them from killing him. They did not see him coming as he literally stabbed one of them in the back before they could execute his father.

/

When Azumi saw that Yu was handling the large bandit. She took out her spear and clicked it so it could expand. The full length spear stretched from her neck to her ankles, and she was fast to putting it to use. Azumi could hear the bandits around her beginning to stir. Azumi quickly managed to finish off a few of the bandits that she had knocked out before they could wake up. However, one of them did before she could get to him.

Out of the corner of Azumi's eye, she saw someone coming for her. The bald survivor was rushing towards her with sword in hand. She had been so preoccupied finishing off her other would-be assailants that she did not notice him regaining consciousness. He was already getting ready to swing by the time she noticed him. There was no time to think. Only react.

In the span of a few seconds everything felt like it was moving in slow motion. Both combatants felt like they could see every movement in that time span as the sword neared Azumi's throat and how both of them had been sweating profusely. The man was swinging his sword horizontally with the speed of a baseball bat with the intention of severing the link between Azumi's head and her shoulders. Likewise Azumi was jumping away like a rabbit to avoid this grisly fate.

When the blade reached the tip of its swing, Azumi's head was not rolling, but the blade did not hit air either. Even though Azumi attempted to move her neck back as she jumped away, she could feel the tip of the enemy's sword scrap across the left side. In that moment, she could feel the wound draw blood instantly, but she did not have time to think about that. The only thing she needed to know was that strike did not kill her. Her head was still firmly attached to her shoulders. She could still breathe. She could still fight. As long as she drew breath, the fight was not over. Her instincts pressed her onward.

Azumi's feet hit the ground as she turned around. "Heyah!" Azumi cried out as she thrusted her spear. The tip was not aimed directly at her combatant's chest. She launched it elsewhere.

"Gah!" Azumi's enemy cried out as the tip of her spear broke through the muscles of his right thigh. It was an ear piercing scream that only a bullet or a cry of an Aragami could best. The man's attempt at a finishing blow had left him vulnerable. Within a few seconds, the man could feel the spear break through and dig into his flesh until he could feel the tip break through the other side of his thigh. "Grh!"

He closed his eyes as he felt the tip and the pole twist around inside him before he felt it ripped right out. "Gh!" He cried out again before being forced down on one knee.

With the amount of pain he was experiencing, he was not ready for what came next. Azumi quickly closed the gap between them and launched her fist right at the side of the man's head. She could feel her knuckles connect to the man's face. The force was so strong it not only forced his face to turn left, but his entire body turned with it.

The bandit nearly lost grip of his sword. Azumi was not about to give up her assault as she raised her foot and hit him squarely on his left side. He was not able to keep himself anchored to the ground as the kicked lifted him up, and his hand lost grip of his sword while in mid-air.

"Mff …" He exhaled when he roughly landed on the ground. His vision became hazy, but he could see his sword was a few feet in front of him. He tried to get back on his feet only to be reminded of the hole in his right thigh which was leaving a pool of blood in its wake. He had no choice but to get on all fours as he attempted to crawl to his sword. He slowly made his way over to his sword.

"…" Azumi shook her head at the display. As she watched that, she could hear from the other side of the room the fight wasn't over yet.

Azumi had turned around to see her brother was having some trouble of his own again. She saw that he was protecting their unconscious father. She quickly reached down for her spare knife on her right thigh and flung it towards one of her brother's would-be murders.

"Gah!" Her knife managed to make a bullseye right on another bandit's back. When he fell to his knees, Yu swiftly slashed through the man's throat. Based on how it was done, it seemed like it was routine for the two of them.

Yu then was able to slash the side of his last opponent before then finishing her by digging his knife into the woman's neck. He could see the knife move through one side and out the other. The woman was gasping for air before Yu removed his knife. As the woman laid there bleeding and gasping for breath, he paid her no mind.

His father still remained on the ground unresponsive. Yu kneeled next to his father and saw that the back of his head was bleeding, but he wasn't bleeding heavily. He checked his pulse to see that he was very much alive. He let out a sigh of relief before looking over to Azumi.

While Azumi helped her brother, the Bald Bandit continued crawling as quickly as he could towards his sword. He was able to grab onto the hilt, but a foot came crashing down upon his hand. He looked up to see Azumi staring down at him. In that instant, he could feel her eyes stabbing daggers at him as her fingers curled into a fist. He did not even attempt to avoid the punch she delivered to his forehead. Her punches felt like a rock and it was lights out for him. His head came crashing to the floor and his hand no longer held onto his sword's hilt which Azumi kicked away. There would be no more trouble from him.

/

With the last of the enemies neutralized, Azumi's mind was able to focus on the reality of her situation. The left side of her neck was bleeding profusely from the earlier injury. While the wound was relatively light, the neck is one if not the most vulnerable spot on the human body. A wound of this nature was more than enough to draw blood as Azumi could feel the blood trickling down her neck. She could feel her hand become drenched in it when she attempted to put pressure. She glance down to see the clothing on her left side should were starting to become saturated and stained in red.

"Hmph." Azumi mused, "Adrenaline can do a lot of things …" As Azumi spoke, her vision became uneven and wobbly. Suddenly, Azumi could feel her legs beginning to shake as she softly cursed, "… Damn …." Azumi found herself kneeling on the ground. "Ah huff … Ah huff …" Azumi breathed deeply as she did her best to continue putting pressure on the wound.

"Sis …" Azumi heard her brother sound horrified behind her. She glanced over her shoulder while she kept her left hand on the wound and maintained her grip on her weapon with her right.

The look on Yu's face was 'troubled' to say the least. His mouth was agape, and he was having difficulty catching his breath at the sight of her. He was as pale as a ghost and his eyes appeared as small as ever. Azumi had never seen Yu in this state before. Not even when Azumi nearly ran out to distract Aragami or in any other dangerous situation they had found themselves in.

Before Yu was able to choke up another word, Azumi grabbed her brother's shoulder and assured him, "I'll live …"

"But …" Yu attempted to speak as he saw his sister's injury.

"We won …" Azumi smiled as she continued to hold onto her neck. "That's what matters right …?" Her voice sounded slightly different from how it usually did. More high pitched. "We lived … they died …"

Yu looked around the room and then back at his sister. Even with all her enemies defeated in this room, it did not stop the fact Azumi was injured by the attack. Her neck was already bleeding, and as time was passing, it bleed more profusely.

"Sis …" Yu took a breath. He was still horrified as he spoke, "Your neck … We need to take care of now or …"

"I'm going to die …" Azumi plainly stated much to her brother's horror as she did her best to hold onto her injury. "I kinda figured that out. You got the first aid kit right?"

"Of course!" Yu immediately ran to where he left his backpack to retrieve his first aid kit as he told his sister, "I'll be right back! Just sit still and let me do what I can! I'm not going to let you die here!"

While her brother was retrieving the first aid kit, Azumi softly said, "I know you won't."

After retrieving the first aid kit, Yu did his best to clean the wound. He used the cleaning alcohol which caused Azumi to feel a 'stinging' sensation that crawled throughout her body. Azumi remained still as she either bit her lip or dug her fingernails into her skin to distract herself. She could be an ideal patient when she chose to be.

After doing his best to clean the blood from his sister's neck, Yu was able to see the wound for himself. He could see his sister had a 'relatively small' gash along her neck courtesy of that man's sword.

The boy's eyes widened and he sucked his lips in. "Eww …" Yu could not contain his disgust for what he saw.

"Yu …" That was all Azumi said.

"Sorry Sis …" Yu sheepishly apologized as he placed ointment on the wound before bandaging it. His efforts would temporarily stop the bleeding, but it was a quick fix at best. Yu sighed, "I'm really sorry, but this is the best I can do."

From the angle of the wound, Azumi wasn't able to see the wound or the bandage from outside the corner of her eye unless she had a mirror, but she could feel the wound that her brother put into treating her. "This'll do. Thanks."

"Are you sure?" Yu asked. They both knew that despite his best efforts, it would be a patch job at best as blood had soaked the towels and her clothes.

Azumi placed her hand on her brother's head as she assured him, "This'll do until we get back to camp. Thanks Yu."

Yu did not protest as Azumi ruffled his hair. Instead he said, "I should be thanking you." Yu then looked towards their unconscious father as he remarked, "So should father."

"How is he?" Azumi inquired as she removed her hand.

Yu replied, "He's still knocked out, but he'll live."

"Good." Azumi nodded her head. "Go check on father again." Azumi ordered as she picked up her spear. She tightened her grip on it as she used it to pick herself up from the ground. "There's one more thing I need to wrap up."

"Okay." Yu walked away to check on their father as Azumi made her way towards the last person alive in the room beside them and their father.

Azumi may have been distracted by her injury, but it was also a reminder of the unfinished business. The timing was impeccable. As she was walking towards him, he was regaining consciousness. Not that it would help him.

"Ugh …" The Bald Bandit groaned as he struggled to open his eyes. When he turned over, he saw that Azumi was standing before him. He attempted to move only to be reminded of the hole in his leg. "Grh … Damn … You got me good …"

"I did." Azumi coldly replied.

"That's a nice weapon you've got." The Bandit motioned to the spear Azumi was holding. "Why didn't you use it sooner?"

"It's still new." Azumi answered.

"Oh …" The Bandit nodded. He then realized that the room was quiet, and there was a reason that Azumi was calmly speaking to him, "It's over …"

"It is." Azumi responded as she stared down at him.

The Bald Bandit looked turned his head right and left to see the corpses that littered the garage as he remained on the ground. As he watched Azumi take another step towards him, he did not attempt to crawl away or even inch away. He took a breath, shook his head, and said, "I warned her … this wouldn't end well. I told her we'd be better off letting you go."

"Who is she?" Azumi interrogated, "Is she your leader?"

"Yeah …" The bald bandit freely told Azumi, "Her name is Etsuko, and I told her that'd we'd be better off not bothering with this whole hunt. If it'd been up to me, it would've stopped when we parted ways before."

"If that's the case, maybe you should've made it up to you." Azumi coldly remarked.

"Ha …" The bandit bitterly replied, "… Maybe you're right."

"I am right." Azumi held onto her spear as she kept it planted on the floor, "This room speaks for itself."

"So …" The Bald Bandit looked Azumi in the eyes as he rhetorically asked, "… I guess this is it for me huh?"

Azumi bluntly stated, "Yes. You see it doesn't matter if you were following orders or you're lying injured on the ground. The fact is you attacked me and my family. That makes you my enemy, and I kill my enemies. I'm sure you understand."

"I do …" The Bald Bandit nodded his head as he spoke, "… I definitely do."

"Do you? Do you really? Do you see these people?" Azumi held out her arms as he motioned to the corpses that surrounded them. "All of them?"

"…" The Bald bandit was only able to softly say, "… Yes."

"Do you see all this blood?" Azumi pointed to her feet. The ground had been stained in puddles of blood from the fallen bandits. With all the death and blood, it would be harder to see a clean part of the floor left.

The Bald bandit reluctantly replied, "… Yes."

"Good because these were all your people, and this is all on you." Azumi pointed directly at the bandit that laid before her. She did not show him an ounce of sympathy as she laid into him. "It was your fault you attacked me! It was your fault your friends wanted to kill my family! It was your fault we were forced to defend ourselves!" Azumi motioned to the corpses again as she continued, "All these people! Your friends! Their blood! It's on your hands! They're all dead because of you! You failed them all!" Azumi's voice was calm but venomous as she had difficulty holding anything back.

"I …" The Bald bandit's eyes were downcast as he shamefully admitted, "I know … I know … I failed them … I got them all killed … It's all my fault. I'm gonna go to my grave knowing that it was."

Azumi's face softened slightly as she apologized, "Sorry to break it to you, but I won't be able to dig you a grave."

"I … I know …" The Bald Bandit understood the circumstances as he said, "This is close enough."

Azumi sincerely replied, "If things were different, I could've …"

"Heh …" The Bald Bandit bitterly chuckled, "… I … I really should've tried harder to convince my boss that we should've left you alone. Things didn't need to end like this."

"But they did." Azumi bluntly stated, "As much as I hate how things turned out that's how it did. I'm not going to cry about what could've been. I'll move on because what's done is done and the 'Past is Prologue.'"

"Heh. I gotta say …" The Bald Bandit smiled and looked Azumi in the eyes as he told her, "… I like that." He then remembered something as he said, "You know … I never did introduce myself. Mind if I give you my name at least?"

"Fine by me. Say it." Azumi's eyes remained in contact with the bandit as she told him, "In fact, if you have any last words say'em."

The Bald Bandit continued to smile as he said, "How considerate of you."

Azumi remained in place thanks to holding onto her spear like a walking staff. "I'm nice like that … or foolish. Take your pick."

"Okay then … In that case let me give you one warning before I say anything else." His voice was serious as he told his opponent, "Leave here today. It's only a matter of time before another group spots you or they find out we're all dead. Etsuko will come after you. She wants your head on a pike after all." Azumi's face dropped and she took a step back upon hearing that as she let the man continue. "She specifically wants your head, and she'd like to do it herself. So do your best to keep it attached."

Azumi touched her neck to feel the bandages were still there. She told him, "Thanks for the warning. My name is Azumi. Kannagi Azumi."

The Bald Bandit smiled as he finally told her, "My name is Akihiro. Funai Akihiro."

"Funai Akihiro?" Azumi repeated out loud and Akihiro nodded in response. "… I'll be sure to remember it. By the way," Azumi noticed Akihiro's sword that remained lying on the ground. I forgot to mention that you had a nice sword. I think I'll be taking that."

"Heh." Akihiro chuckled as he told the young woman, "Go ahead. You won after all. To the victor go the spoils."

Azumi grinned, "Yet another old saying from the other world that still applies to this one."

"There's definitely worse people who could claim that sword. Might as well be you." Akihiro requested, "Take care of it."

"You don't have to worry. I will." Azumi's grip on her weapon tightened. Now it's time to take care of some unfinished business." Without sparing another word, Azumi lifted up her spear.

When Azumi stepped forward, Akihiro did not attempt to crawl way. The bandit didn't cry out and beg for his life. Nor did he try reaching out for anything random lying on the floor. It would've amounted to nothing, but shame. Greater shame than he was already guilty of. He remained lying on the floor perfectly still. Right before he could feel anything, he closed his eyes and smiled.

Azumi's actions were swift. The tip of her spear cut through the man's skin like butter. It broke through his chest right as it pierce through his heart. "Ah …" A small gasp escaped from the man's mouth. Akihiro could feel the tip of the weapon break through his chest and pierce through his heart. There was no denying it. These were his final moments.

In that moment, Akihiro could feel his body drain of life. Even though his eyes were already closed he could feel them become darker. Before the light left his eyes completely, he was able to mutter, "… Thanks."

Akihiro's eyes remained closed and he was still smiling but his mouth went agape as he felt the last bit of his life leave his body. His head and hands went limp after a few seconds with the smile still on his face. Azumi placed her boot on the Akihiro's chest. She roughly withdrew her spear from the man's chest, and it shoved the man's corpse to the floor.

The moment Akihiro's body hit the ground, Azumi could feel her stomach sink and her heart ache. Azumi could feel it eating at her like nothing ever had before. Taking deep breaths could do nothing to put this feeling at ease. She clutched her heart, but it did little to help. Instead, she looked down upon it.

"…" Azumi stared at the fresh course that laid before her. She looked over to see a dirty bloody rag on the floor. She walked over to pick it up. She shook it a little before moving to the man's body and covering his face with it.

Azumi stared at the man's corpse for another moment before lightly biting her lip and turning around. Azumi walked away while continuing to hold onto her neck with one hand and maintaining her grip of her weapon with the other as she used it as a third leg. She needed to maintain her strength anyway she could.

/

 **Author Notes** : I'm glad that I was able to bring this story out of hiatus. I do plan on updating it in the future as I plan on updating my other active stories. While this story has been on hiatus, I have written out future scenes for chapters. Hopefully, I will be able to post all of the work I have done someday in the near future.

This chapter was originally planned to be longer than that. I originally planned on one or two scenes happening after that. However, I thought it would be more fitting to end with Azumi putting the towel on Akihiro's head and walking away to speak with her brother again about their father's current condition. I figure it would be for the best to have those scenes be the start of the next chapter.

I purposely didn't showcase any of Haru's fighting. I just wanted to imply that he did hold his own pretty well. He took down a few before he ran into a little trouble. As I said, one of the bandits ended up whacking his head with a rock like Azumi did to one of the bandits when the fight began. Yu would have ended up in the same situation if not worse without Azumi's interference. In the end, Azumi was the only one who did not need help fighting her enemies, but she did need help with what happened after the fight. I think in a way it sort of evens out. They'd all be dead if things had gone differently.

Haru isn't a completely terrible father. He refused to let the bandits take his daughter. He did want a more 'peaceful' solution, but even he saw that was not going to be possible. That's why after his proposal was shot down, he decided to let Azumi say what she said. While you might complain about him telling Azumi to put her gun away, it was for a practical reason. Using the gun was necessary, but overusing it would use up all the bullets, and it would increase the chances of an Aragami hearing it. That's why he didn't say anything until after they took cover.

While Haru used to be a police officer, he didn't bring a gun with him and let Azumi be the one to carry a gun because he as allowing her to be in charge. While he could have taken another gun, he didn't think they would have a problem like this. It is one of those things where you do something so many times and you never needed it. The one time you decided not to bring it, you needed it. Definitely one of those situations.

It was always my intention to make Akihiro and Azumi's fight be a brief one. Akihiro was not meant to be a final boss type material. Additionally, Akihiro didn't think Azumi would be able to counterattack after he nearly cut off her head. It was a foolish mistake on his part. Additionally, as with Fire Emblem, spear trumps sword.

At the end of the chapter, Azumi is wondering if she might have possibly crossed a line by killing Akihiro. Unlike any of the other people she killed, she feels some guilt killing the last one. She had reasons to do it. They decided not to fight, and she was hoping that would be the end of it even though she had a feeling it wasn't. Her feelings were unfortunately justified by this man, and she had to put him down. I'm sure others would agree.

Despite Akihiro being a 'better person' by comparison to the other people she killed, it did not change the fact he was her enemy, and he could still be a threat that should be eliminated. Personally, I feel Azumi had every right not to show mercy considering what happened. What do you think?

This chapter was focused on human to human violence while the Aragami were sidelined just like the political storyline of ' **Attack on Titan** ' sidelined the Titans. Anyway, you can expect Aragami to appear again in the next chapter. I also plan on showcasing God Eaters fighting the Aragami in a future chapter as well. You will have that to look forward to.

I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Please leave a review because I greatly appreciate the feedback. See you next time, and I hope it'll be sooner rather than later.


	5. Destination Fenrir – Part One

**Author Notes** : I have managed to complete the new chapter in time for the end of October 2017. I decided that due to it being October that it would be the perfect month to update this story with at least one chapter. This story isn't meant to be scary, but we all know how violent I've made it which works well with the atmosphere of Halloween. Not to mention the Aragami are perfect Halloween monsters. The anime adaptation would have been better off airing in the fall than in the summer.

As I mentioned in the author notes for Chapter 17 of "Into the Fog", my schedule during the first half of 2017 was jam-packed. Afterwards, I took an on-and-off hiatus from writing while still doing it on the side. I'm glad to be writing on a regular basis again. I look forward to producing more chapters in the near future.

This chapter takes place immediately after the conclusion of Chapter Four. Certain parts at the beginning of the chapter were originally meant to be the ending of Chapter Four, but I decided they would work better for being the beginning of the fifth chapter instead. Based on how the story developed, it felt like this was for the better. I also received some advice on handling a certain situation for this chapter from one of my regular readers, TBone511. It gave me time to handle a revision that I think made this chapter work better than it originally would have or at least a little more 'realistic'.

I enjoyed writing the fight scene in the previous chapter, and I look forward to how I will present future fight scenes down the line. I'm glad that the reception to the fight scene was positive. That is encouraging. It certainly helps with producing more fight scenes in later chapters. I have a method when it comes to writing fight scenes, and it appears to be effective based on the reception. I will have to make sure to keep working on it, so I can make fight scenes even better and effective.

As usual, I hope you will all enjoying reading the latest installment of this story, and I hope you will all provide feedback.

/

Past is Prologue

Story Arc One – Surviving in the Wild – Part V

Chapter Five – Destination Fenrir – Part One

/

Our goal is in reach

We have to keep on moving

Or else we will die

/

A simple parking garage. What had once been a place for people to park their cars, so they could go about their business had been turned into a battlefield. Various weapons ranging from knives to swords laid on the ground without an owner to claim them. Warm bullet shells were scattered across the room. Blood soaked the pavement. Lifeless bodies of people who had been alive less than an hour ago littered the ground. It wouldn't be long before this once simple but lively place would reek of the stench of death.

In that parking garage, there were only three people left. Azumi, her brother Yu, and their father Haru, who was unconscious. Their clothes had rips, and they were covered in blood that both belonged and didn't belong to them. It felt as if even a hundred showers wouldn't be enough to cleanse them of this putrid smell. Unfortunately, the smell was not their highest priority.

"Ah huff … Ah huff … Ah huff …" The sounds of heavy breaths could be heard escaping from Azumi's mouth as she slowly made her way across the ruins of the parking garage toward her brother and unconscious father.

Azumi wasn't entirely sure what to do. The bandage Yu placed on her neck was slowly becoming saturated with blood. Yu's work was a patch job that neither expected to last long. It could only slow the inevitable. Azumi honestly wasn't sure if putting pressure on the wound in this case was a good idea since it could cause the bandage to be removed, and she could be in even bigger trouble.

Yu finished putting a bandage on their father's head with their first aid kit when he looked over his shoulder to see Azumi struggling to make her way over to them.

"Sis …" Yu said to Azumi with a hint of dread.

When Azumi was standing a few feet away, she asked, "Is father going to be okay?"

Yu replied, "… He's still alive."

"Phew …" Azumi breathed a sigh of relief and smiled. "That's good to hear." She could feel herself lean on her spear as she remained standing.

"Sis …" Yu hesitated to ask, "Are you sure you're gonna be okay …?"

"I'll be fine. I … I just need to catch my breath." Azumi knelt down to the ground and attempted to assure her brother, "I should be good to go if I rest a little."

Yu could feel himself bite his lip as he said, "You need to get to a doctor. Do you really think you'll be able to get back?"

Azumi took a breath before answering, "I have to be. I can't afford to wait here for help, and I …" Azumi lightly pinched herself as she told Yu, "I won't make it if we take too long. Besides, didn't you hear what Akihiro said?"

"I … I heard some of it." Yu gritted his teeth as he voiced his disbelief, "I … I can't believe someone would want to do that to you …" He shook his head and angrily raised his voice, "It's their fault this happened! They got themselves killed because they wanted to kill you!"

Azumi shook her head, "That doesn't matter. What matters is that we 'need' to tell the camp that those psychos want all of our heads on pikes."

"…" Yu remained deafly silent.

Azumi repeated, "I said we 'need' to tell them that those psychos want all of our heads on pikes."

"I … I heard you the first time …" Yu cringed at the thought, "I know what we need to do."

"Good …" Azumi put her hand on her shoulder near her bandaged neck as she told Yu, "I hope you also know what you need to do if you get slowed down."

Yu's eyes widened slightly. "Wha … No …" Yu shook his head, "That's not happening!"

"Listen Yu!" Azumi stretched her hand out and put it on Yu's shoulder. He could feel her gripping him, so he would be sure to listen to every word. "We don't exactly have all the time in the world. Either more of those psychos are gonna find us or the Aragami will. If either one happens, you need to be the one that lives. You got that?" 

"But … But Sis …" Yu weakly attempted to protest.

"No buts!" Azumi gripped Yu's shoulder harder. "We've already had this discussion before! I don't plan on dying, but if that's the case, then so be it. You need to get out of here and make it to Fenrir. You got that?"

"…" Yu couldn't bring himself to answer.

Azumi lightly shook Yu as she said, "I asked you a question. 'You got that'?"

Yu reluctantly answered, "Yes …"

"Good." Azumi let go of Yu and told him as she continued to look him in the eyes, "I'm holding you to that."

Yu couldn't bring himself to look away as he replied, "You always do."

"In that case," Azumi looked over her shoulder to see Akihiro's sword was still in the last place it was left before she told her brother, "You can take the sword. It belongs to us now."

"You want me to have it?" Yu asked.

"I already got a good weapon," Azumi motioned to her spear before continuing, "You need more than your knives. So go get that sword."

"Ok." Yu nodded before moving back towards Akihiro's corpse and claimed his sword. When he held the sword in his arms, he could feel its weight. If he didn't grip it properly, it would slip from his fingers. He looked over his shoulders to see Azumi was still kneeling next to their father and asked, "Are you sure you want me to have this?"

"Yes." Azumi remarked with a smile, "I can't have all the cool weapons, and I think it would be rather befitting for you." Azumi playfully told her brother, "They say heroes like to use swords."

"Heroes?" Yu asked in an astonished tone.

"Yep." Azumi stated, "Anyway, keep a look out. I need to try and wake up father. We can't stay here much longer."

"Um … right. You got it Sis!" Yu nodded his head as he took Akihiro's sheath and sword belt and put it over his head. He then turned his attention to the entrance to the parking garage that they and the bandits had used to enter. He kept the sword in hand ready to use.

When Azumi looked at Yu concentrating his attention on the door, Azumi softly said to herself, "Thank you …" She then turned her attention to her father and crawled her way to closing the gap between herself and him. She slightly winced as she felt the gravel brush against her clothes and skin, but she kept moving towards him until she could touch him with her outstretched arms.

Azumi touched her father's shoulder and began to lightly shake him. She leaned forward and told him in a hushed sound that even Yu couldn't hear from his position. "Wake up. Wake up father." She shook a little harder when she didn't receive a response right away. "Please wake up. We need to get out of here. More of them are coming."

"…" Haru still lied on the ground motionlessly, but Azumi could still see his back move which proved he was still breathing.

"Please!" Azumi slightly raised her voice in desperation as she sounded like she was begging him. "Wake up!" Azumi's shakes were becoming slightly more aggressive as she continued, "Yu needs you! I need you! We're not going to leave you so please wake up! Come on! I know you can do this! Wake up!"

"Ugh …" Haru finally groaned as he began to stir.

"Ah …" Azumi's mouth went slightly agape upon seeing this.

Azumi could see Haru's eyes struggling to open. She ceased shaking him and pulled her arm away. She waited for Haru's eyes to open on their own. When he opened his eyes, the first thing he could see in this shadowed garage was his daughter Azumi.

"A …" Haru's head remained on the ground as he struggled to speak the first word.

"Father!" Azumi happily exclaimed. Yu turned his body around at the sound of his sister's voice. His face brightened as well.

"A … Azumi …?" Haru groggily spoke.

"It's me." Azumi grabbed her father as he tried to get up. She called out, "Yu! He's awake!"

Haru's eyes were unfocused as he tried to look in Azumi's direction, but his vision was shaken. It looked as if there were two or three Azumis in front of him as he spoke, "Azumi … Are you …?"

Azumi placed her hand on his shoulder as she finished his sentence. "We're fine father. We're all fine. We're all alive. We got to get out of here before more psychos get here."

Haru's eyes remained unfocused as he attempted to inquire, "Psychos …?"

Azumi reminded her father, "We were ambushed. We were fighting them off and you got knocked out."

"Right …" The memories began to flood back to Haru as he nursed his head. He closed his eyes and slightly shook his head to focus. His vision became more focused as he said, "That's right … They wanted to kill you …" Haru's eyes widened upon seeing the blood and bandages on his daughter's neck. "What the hell?!" Haru grabbed Azumi's arm as he exclaimed, "I thought you said you were okay!"

Azumi was slightly taken aback by her father's reaction. "I … I am."

"Like hell!" Haru exclaimed. "You're badly hurt! You might be worse than me!"

"…" Azumi remained silent as her father spoke then decided to speak when she thought she had an opportunity, "I'm still breathing and have my head. That counts as okay."

"Azumi!" Haru began to say, "That is not …!"

Before Haru could finish, Yu came crashing down on him as his son's arms circled around him as he happily shouted, "Father! Father you're awake!"

"Ah …" It took Haru a moment before he slowly returned the hug, "Yes Yu. I'm fine."

"Are you really?" Yu asked.

"I will be." Haru assured Yu before then separating and telling him, "We need to get going. Your sister needs immediate medical attention."

Azumi replied, "Yes and more of those assholes are going to be coming after us. **A lot more!** "

Yu let go of Haru as he addressed Azumi, "We can talk about it when we get back to camp." Haru stood up as he asked, "Can you walk? Do you need me to carry …?"

"No." Azumi answered before Haru could finish. Azumi stood up and asked, "I can walk fine on my own. Can you?"

"…" Haru took a moment. He felt his body shake slightly before straightening himself out and replying, "I'll manage."

"Good." Azumi turned around and started to make her way to the door. "Now let's get out of here. Also those bigger problems can't wait until we get back to camp."

Haru began to follow his daughter as he asked, "What are the bigger problems?"

Azumi answered, "Before I killed the last psycho," Azumi pointed to Akihiro's fresh corpse, "he told me there were more of them, and they'll want to put everyone's heads on pikes."

Haru's eyes widened as he stopped in his tracks, "Good lord. He said that."

Azumi stopped walking and looked over her shoulder and replied, "Yes."

"I heard it too father." Yu quickly interjected. "Those people are bloodthirsty, and they won't stop until we're all dead."

"…" Haru had no words in response.

Azumi stated, "We need to get out of the city before they find us again or find out what I did to their friends."

"…" Azumi's father remained silent.

Azumi then ordered, "Keep your eyes open. They might have other spies in the area."

Yu replied, "You got it Sis!"

Haru followed his children in silence. As he walked behind them, his eyes had fully readjusted. He could properly see the aftermath of the battle. He could see that blood had been spilt on the floor as if a large box of red wine had been scattered. He could see there was not a spec of life in any of the bodies that were lying on the floor except for the three of them. He could smell the stench of death was starting to overcome this place.

When the Kannagi siblings noticed their father slow down, Azumi and Yu briefly looked over their shoulders. Azumi could feel her heart sink upon seeing Haru's reaction, but she could also feel something else beginning to fester inside her. She could feel her teeth grit against the other. Her fingers on her right hand slowly curled up and she felt her fingernails begin to dig into her skin. It wasn't enough to draw blood, but they were about to leave a temporary indentation.

Azumi's father was completely oblivious to the tension building from within her. However, the narrow eyes of Azumi did not go unnoticed by Yu. He said out loud for both of them to hear. "We really should get out of here!" That was enough for both sets of eyes to be drawn on him. "It's only a matter of time before their friends come looking. If we stick around long enough, we might also attract the attention of an Aragami."

"He's right." Azumi moved her head to face the exit. "We need to go."

Haru nodded his head, "Right."

/

Even after making it out of the clutches of death from the ambush, it did not mean they were out of the woods yet. They still needed to make it back to camp which was quickly proving not to be easy. When they were about halfway to camp, they could hear the loud footsteps that could cause the ground to shake which meant only one thing.

The trio stopped in their tracks when they say a few pebbles in the ground jump up. Their ears perked up to listen to the sounds. It sounded like it was still a distance, but they listened for three steps. After listening to three, the sounds were getting louder which caused the hairs on the back of their heads to stand up.

"Damn it!" Azumi cursed and gritted her teeth.

Azumi and her family saw to their right there was a building that appeared sturdy enough for them to take shelter in. However, the deterioration of the building would allow anyone outside to have a good view, but they lacked better options. They would need to remain on their knees to stay undetected.

Two minutes later, they saw the creature for themselves. It was a lone Oregtail. An Aragami that apparently was separated from its pack. While it was normal to see them travel and hunt in packs, it wasn't unusual to see them alone either. However, it didn't matter if it was alone. They had no weapons to fight it, and they have all seen how dangerous one could be. Azumi could feel the sweet beginning to build above her eyebrows that slowly began to crawl down her face.

' **Thump**!' ' **Thump**!' ' **Thump**!' ' **Thump**!'

In their present state, if that thing spotted them, it would be Game Over. As the creature passed by their position, they did not even whisper to each other. They barely moved an inch. It was as if they had been petrified. They could not bring themselves to let out a sigh of relief after it passed them. However, they could feel their heart rates ease up with each step it took away from them. When it was a fair distance away, the wind suddenly picked up again and the Aragami stopped in its tracks. The trio could feel their heartbeats racing again.

' **Thump**!' ' **Thump**!' ' **Thump**!' ' **Thump**!'

"Oh no …" Yu moved back. Sweat was forming on his forehead as he remarked in a dreadful tone, "The Aragami's not moving away."

"Crap!" Azumi could feel the blood still lightly pouring from her wound and staining the bandage Yu gave her as she asked, "Do you think it smells the blood?"

"Ah …" Haru breathed in as he quietly replied, "Good lord I hope not."

 **Sniff! Sniff!**

Azumi's eyes widened as she realized, "It looks like its sniffing for something." Azumi did her best to keep her voice as low as possible as she crouched down, "Something caught its attention. We can't stay here. We have to keep moving."

Haru looked to see a backdoor. "We might be able to get out that way. This building might provide enough cover for a block or two. We need to keep qu …" Haru stopped when he noticed Azumi taking her shirt off while she still had her undershirt on. "What're you doing Azumi?"

"Letting it satisfy its curiosity." Azumi answered as she threw the shirt away from her to the floor. "Now let's keep moving." Azumi remained kneeling as she moved to the backdoor followed by the other two.

A few moments after they vacated the room, the Aragami came crashing through only to find the blood soaked shirt. The Orgetail opened its jaws and ripped through the shirt like it was paper. Afterwards, the creature continued its aimless wandering around until the next time something caught its attention.

After putting some distance between themselves and that Aragami, Yu kept a lookout behind them as they walked. "Phew." Yu breathed in relief. "I think we lost it."

"Grh …" Azumi groaned and gritted her teeth as she leaned against a building. "… Good thing their sense of smell doesn't seem to be as good as a dog's. Otherwise, we'd be screwed." Azumi felt the need to put pressure on her neck again as she cried out, "Grh …" Even with her best efforts, her volume was still higher than she would've liked.

Yu and Haru's eyes widened as they called out, "Azumi!" The fact they were in Aragami infested territory escaped them as well.

Azumi held up her hand and said, "Don't worry … I … I'll be fine …"

"You're not fine. Just look at yourself." Haru pointed to the bandage on Azumi's neck. "That cut is just getting worse. The bandage is covered in your blood."

"Yeah I know …" Azumi continued to lean against the wall as she retorted, "I said 'I'll be fine.' I didn't say I 'am' fine."

Haru narrowed his eyes as he scolded his daughter, "This isn't the time to be smart young lady! This is your life we are talking about!" Haru stepped towards his daughter and offered his hand. "Lean on me. I can support you the rest of the way."

"That'll take too long." Azumi pushed herself off the wall and walked passed Haru's offer. With each step, she could feel her feet wobble ever so slightly. It felt as if she would fall if she were to stop now. As she continued to walk, she said out loud, "We need to get out of here as fast as we can."

"Azumi!" Father exclaimed.

"Sis!" Yu replied in kind. "Let us help you!"

Azumi kept walking as she replied, "We can't afford to slow down for a second out here! Just keep a lookout and make sure we're not followed!"

"…" Yu took a moment to reluctantly reply, "… Alright Sis!"

"Hmm …" Haru shook his head as he reluctantly let his daughter keep pressing forward despite his strong misgivings. However, they did manage to make it back to the camp without any further incidents.

/

By the time the trio returned to camp, the bandages around Azumi's neck were fully saturated as indicated by the color red visible for everyone to see. Even the alcohol and ointment Yu placed on her neck wasn't enough to keep it at bay forever. Needless to say, Azumi's first step was to receive medical attention for her wounds. Haru made sure of that before he went to tell the council members what transpired. After Azumi was in Araki's care, he made a beeline for the meeting room, and he summoned the council members.

"There is no point in debating this!" Haru firmly stated, "We need to pack up the camp and evacuate immediately!"

"Put …" Kouta was visibly shaking as he softly asked, "Putting our heads on pikes? You really heard them say that?"

Haru took a step towards Kouta and pointed to his neck as he asked, "Did you see the injury on my daughter's neck?! Did you?!"

Kouta hesitantly replied, "Well um …"

Haru bluntly stated, "They tried to behead my daughter! Right in front of me! In case you're not getting it, they tried to cut her head off!"

"…" Everyone else in the room was forced into silence.

Haru's arms were crossed and his eyes were narrow. However, he tried to be calm after taking a breath as he told the council members, "She's lucky it was a nick. I'm lucky she's good at fighting and dodging, or she'd be dead. These were people she tried to negotiated with and talk down. They repaid her efforts by trying to murder her."

"…" Kouta couldn't off a rebuttal.

"There is no debate." Haru put his fist down on the table like a gavel. "This is an order! We're leaving today! If you don't want to leave, feel free to stay here! Be my guest!"

Kouta's eyes widened. "What?"

Haru looked Kouta in the eyes as he told him, "You heard me! Now get moving!"

Kouta reflexively moved back as he cowered in front of Haru, "Y- Yes sir!" Kouta immediately turned around and left.

Shin smiled at the display. The other council members except for him and Shin took their leave of the meeting room.

When it was only Haru and Kouta left, Haru plopped into his chair. He put his elbow on the table, and put the palms of his hands on his forehead. "Damn … I really was naïve … There are people you can't negotiate with. The old laws will never exist again … Not in my lifetime anyway."

"It is never too late to learn new things." Shin remarked. "It's like you always said. 'Past is prologue'."

"…" Haru remained silent upon hearing that.

"Now let's just try making sure it doesn't catch up to us." Shin stated before taking his own leave. Haru was left alone.

/

While Haru was handling things in his head, Azumi and Yu were resting in the doctor's temporary station. Their mother Kaede was with them as well. Upon seeing her daughter, Kaede turned pale white. 'Doctor' Araki on the other hand quickly prepared the proper medical supplies, so he could begin his 'operation'. Yu on the other hand was doing his best to keep Azumi's newly exposed wound clean.

It took a few moments for Kaede to think of anything to say. When she said anything, her daughter was already sitting. "What kind of monsters would do this to you?"

Azumi let out a breath and replied, "The same kind that held Yu hostage."

Kaede exclaimed, "What?!"

"It's true." Yu interjected. "A few days ago, Sis and I ran into some of their friends. Azumi negotiated with them and let them live. They repaid her by trying to cut off her head."

"Oh … my … I …" Kaede held her head with her hands. She looked as if she was going to have a panic attack.

"It's okay mom." Yu held his mother's shoulder and assured her, "We made it back. The doc will take care of Sis. Then we'll all get out of here and head to Fenrir together."

"…" Kaede remained silent as she calmed down.

"If you don't mind Kaede-san," The doctor instructed, "I believe your husband would most likely need your help. Could you go help him while I focus on treating Azumi?" He added his assurance, "I promise she will be fine."

"Hmm …" Kaede took a breath and replied, "Very well." With that she took her leave.

As soon as Kaede had left the area, Azumi mused, "Things keep getting worse out here. This is just how things turned out."

'Doctor' Araki replied, "That does appear to be the case." He held a needle and thread. He lightly heated the needle as he told Azumi, "This is going to be rather uncomfortable."

Azumi bit her lip before she noticed Yu offering his hand. She grabbed his hand before nodding her head. With every movement the doctor made, Yu could feel Azumi's grip tighten. Yu could also see Azumi's lips tighten which formed a seal to prevent any sound from escaping. The process was going to take a while, but it was going smoothly as a result.

/

While Azumi was receiving her much needed medical attention, the camp was in a frenzy to gather their belongings. Haru was doing his best to avoid creating a panic. While he informed them regarding the enemy, he censored the more horrific information of what their 'exact intentions' were. There was more 'annoyance' and 'concern' in the air than anything else.

"Is it really a good idea to be leaving so late?" Izumi nervously asked, "What if we run into an Aragami? Can't we just leave in the morning?"

Yasuko replied, "We didn't exactly have much choice. If those crazy people are as vicious as I heard, it wouldn't have taken them long before they found us."

"Hmph." One of their fellow survivors by the name of Rin, who was a mother to one of the children who looked up to Azumi, asked, "Are these the same people Azumi pissed off."

Minato happened to be standing nearby and interjected, "I heard Azumi actually did try to work things out peacefully with these people, but it all fell flat."

"Really?" Izumi asked with interest.

"Yeah." Minato stated, "Her father saw it happen."

"Pfft." Rin dismissively stated, "He isn't exactly an unbiased person."

"You saw how injured they were didn't you?" Minato asked. "Do you think they did that to themselves or something?"

"…" Rin didn't have anything to say in response.

Minato stated in a matter-of-fact tone, "They both received pretty serious injuries, and he's been pretty tough on her behavior for a while. He's not the type of person to lie about this."

"Now that you mention it," Izumi cupped her chin with her hand as she said, "they did have some pretty nasty injures. Did something happen to Azumi's neck?"

"Yeah." Minato bluntly stated, "I heard they tried to behead her."

"!" All three survivor's eyes widened upon hearing that.

Yasuko was the first to ask out loud, "Seriously? That seriously happened?!"

"That's what I heard." Minato replied, "We should …"

"Enough of that." Shin walked by the group conversing with each other. "If you have time to speak, you have time to pack. Get to work."

Minato slightly bowed his head, "Yes sir!"

"…" The rest of the group remained silent as they continued to pack their belongings.

/

Azumi was able to use the mirror 'Doctor' Araki provided her. She could see the tears in her flesh pressing against each other due to the stitches. She cringed at the sight of them as she sarcastically remarked, "Well … This baby is gonna leave a real beauty mark …"

Yu sat next to his sister's 'hospital' bed. He couldn't help but stare at the stitches and the slash mark that laid underneath them. The thought of his sister bleeding extensively from that region was enough to make him shiver. It seemed as if it wouldn't take much for her head to fall off. Yu was barely able to make out any of his sister's ramblings. It went in one ear and out the other. He was barely able to comprehend even what Doctor Araki was telling them.

The doctor instructed Azumi, "Now hold still."

"All right." Azumi laid still as the doctor applied some ointment and then covered the stitches with a bandage.

"We'll have to keep the bandage on for a couple of days. Sometime later on we'll be able to remove the stitches." The doctor told the girl.

"Yeah I figured." Azumi put her hands behind her head as she continued to lie on the bed. Afterwards, the doctor went back to his desk. Azumi held up the mirror again to look at her new bandage. Even with it blocking her view of the bandages, she could still feel them underneath. "I bet it'll look reeeal good …" Azumi continued to sarcastically remark.

"Let's just be glad that's the only thing it's going to leave!" Yu blurted out.

"…" Upon hearing Yu speak, Azumi remained silent as she placed the mirror down next to her.

"You … I …" Yu needed a moment to think of the right words to say. "When you were fighting I was … I didn't think there was anything to worry about, but when I saw your injury … I … I couldn't help but think about how that bastard wanted to chop your head off. After the fight was over, I thought you might bleed to death even with the patch job I did."

Azumi took another breath and looked up at the ceiling as she mused, "You weren't the only one …"

"…" Yu lightly bit his lip.

Azumi moved her head slightly to look at Yu and morbidly told him, "I'm going to be really honest with you. When he cut my neck, I thought that was going to be the end." Azumi placed her hand next to her bandages as she continued, "Even though it didn't kill me, I figured the injury would kill me. I was bleeding a lot … but I don't have to tell you that … I …" Azumi quickly found herself at a loss for words as well.

"Hmm …" Yu didn't have much to say as he continued to listen.

Azumi looked up to the ceiling and held up her hand in the air. "You know I …" Azumi took a moment to think about what to say next, "When that was happening, I … I just wanted to make sure that he and his friends would go down with me." She closed her hands into a fist as she continued, "I wasn't going to let him and those assholes kill me until I made sure they were dead first." She gritted her teeth as she told her brother, "I wasn't going to let them do anything to you or father."

"…" Yu remained silent. He could see Azumi had more to say.

When they were all dead, and I was still alive, I honestly didn't know what was going to happen next …" Azumi's hand slowly fell down next to her as she continued speaking, "I knew I would die if nothing changes … I wasn't sure if that patch job would be enough to save me, but it did. I managed to live long enough to get help." Azumi looked to her brother and smiled. "I would've been dead if it weren't for you. Thank you."

Yu shook his head, "You don't have to thank me. You've done so much for me." Yu couldn't look Azumi in the eyes as he said, "I wasn't going to let you die like that. I just couldn't …"

"Hmph." Azumi laid her head further into the pillow as she remarked, "I … I kinda feel surreal … I've been seriously injured before, but this was by far the worst. I just felt like everything was falling out of my grasp. You helped me regain it."

Before Yu could reply, they could hear thing getting hectic outside. "Sounds like things are getting crazy out there. Mind taking a look for me?"

"Okay." Yu got up from his seat and moved toward the source of the noise.

Azumi then looked toward 'Doctor' Araki and said, "Thanks for the stitches doc."

"Hmph." 'Doctor' Araki mused, "I wish you didn't need my treatments all the time."

"This was unavoidable." Azumi defensively remarked, "You weren't there."

"Both true I suppose." Araki calmly replied, "Nevertheless, you'll most likely get yourself killed if this keeps up. There is only so long you can survive like this."

"I've been doing a good job surviving since I was seven." Azumi proudly stated.

"Also true, but there is more to life than surviving." Araki replied.

"Hmm …" Azumi looked over to the side and said, "… yeah I know." Azumi's ears perked up when she heard Yu's footsteps getting closer which caused her to look in his direction and ask, "How is it out there Yu?"

"Everyone's doing something. They're all packing things up." Yu speculated, "Father probably kept quiet about a few things, so people aren't in a panic out there."

"That was a good decision on his part." Azumi remarked, "We'd be screwed if the entire camp got into a frenzy."

Yu nodded his head, "Hmm …"

"Well …" Azumi sat up straight on her hospital bed, "might as well do my part."

Yu perked his head up. "Huh?"

'Doctor' Araki stepped towards Azumi and asked, "What do you think you are doing?"

"What does it look like I'm doing?" Azumi stated, "I'm going to help with the evacuation."

"Are you crazy?" Yu protested, "You should be resting. Didn't they keep people on hospital beds if they were hurt that bad?"

"This isn't a hospital and this isn't back then." The second Azumi stood up, she felt light headed which caused her to lean backwards on her right foot before forcing herself forward. "Wah!" Azumi couldn't contain the surprise gasp and shook her head.

"What you are trying to do is ill-advised." 'Doctor' Araki pointed out, "You nearly lost your balance a moment ago. You couldn't handle major stressful activity right now. You'll most likely reopen your stitches."

"We don't have time to be worrying about that Doc. We need to get going." Azumi hurriedly stated, "You need as much help as you can get with this evacuation, and you don't have a whole lot of options. You'll need all the help you can get."

"…" 'Doctor' Araki glanced at his table and replied, "Very well."

"Wha …?" Yu let out in disbelief.

The doctor continued to speak while ignoring Yu. "Let me give you something that can help first." He held a needle in his hand that he cleaned.

Azumi reluctantly replied, "Okay …" She held out her arm for him to inject the fluid into.

"You've got to be kidding me!" Yu loudly protested as he stood to block her path. "You should be resting Azumi! Let everyone else handle this! You've done enough for us! Just rest!"

"Eh!" Azumi winced when the doctor injected the contents of the needle into her blood. "Sorry Yu, but I've got to help with this too."

"Why?" Yu asked. "We can do this without you for once!"

"Because I have … I have …" Suddenly Azumi felt her eyes become heavy, and her head drooped. "Wha …?" Azumi muttered in confusion.

"What?" Yu was taken aback by the sudden change.

"Ah huff … Ah huff …" Azumi was breathing heavily as she looked at her arm and then her eyes trailed to the needle the doctor was holding and then to the doctor himself. When Azumi's eyes widened, she realized what was happening. "You …"

The doctor face slightly frowned as he merely asked, "Sleepy already? I expected as much. You should go to sleep." The doctor put his hand on Azumi's shoulders to position her to sleep on the hospital bed, and she lacked the energy to resist.

Azumi's body was becoming numb, and she was having difficulty moving her fingertips let along her feet. Azumi was barely able to keep her eyes open. It was a struggle for her to keep awake as her eyelids became heavier with each passing second.

"What did you give her?" Yu demanded to know.

'Doctor' Araki flicked the needle with his left hand and said, "Something so she won't disregard Doctor's orders this time."

"Why you …" That was all Azumi had the strength to mutter.

The doctor shook his head and told the Kannagi siblings, "I'm not proud of what I did, but it was necessary."

"You … son of a …" Before Azumi could finish her sentence, her head sunk into the bed and the sleep finally overcame her. Her eyelids finally closed, and her eyes were 'sealed' underneath until the drug would wear off.

"You're very welcome." The doctor casually remarked, "The very fact you succumbed so quickly just proves my point."

"…" Yu had nothing else to offer but silence.

"Hmm …" The doctor looked at Yu and asked, "Do you have a problem with what I just did?"

Yu replied, "She better be okay doctor."

The doctor immediately assured Yu, "She'll be fine. She'll only get herself killed and slow us down if she over exerts herself. I'm sure you could tell that right?"

"Well …" Yu didn't have much to say in response.

"I don't know if it was the blood loss or her general stubbornness, but she was definitely not thinking clearly." The doctor put the needle back on his desk. "I'm sure you can see why it was important to force her to go to sleep."

Yu admitted, "She's not always upfront about how serious her injuries are, but I saw how bad they were for myself. I also saw that she was really pushing herself when we were heading back to camp."

"That's putting it mildly." The doctor looked at Azumi's sleeping figure who was slowly breathing in and out. "It's for the best she gets some sleep."

Yu nodded, "… Yeah."

"It will." The doctor then suggested, "You might as well help with the packing. I'll take care of things here and keep an eye on Azumi."

"…" Yu didn't react right away as he looked up at the doctor.

"What?" The doctor raised an eyebrow.

Yu looked back at Azumi before reluctantly replying, "… Fine, but I'll be back soon."

'Doctor' Araki attempted to assure Yu, "I don't know what's going through your head, but I have every intention of helping Azumi recover."

Yu crossed his arms and slightly narrowed his eyes. "Tell that to the people who want Sis thrown out of here."

"Hmph … Fair enough." The doctor attempted to assure Yu again, "However, I can assure you that I was never one of them, and there aren't that many who feel that way."

"If you say so …" Yu lightly bit his lip before reluctantly telling the doctor, "… I'll give you the benefit of the doubt since you're supposed to be a doctor."

"That's a start." The doctor mused.

"I'll be back soon." Yu left the room leaving his sister to recover.

/

When Yu witnessed the camp preparing for their Exodus, he looked behind from where he came from and then he looked forward again before heading into the fray. This was not the right time to be watching. Within two hours, Azumi and Yu's group were on the move. As they went on the road, the doctor kept watch over Azumi's injury. It would not take much for the wound to reopen.

While their group's departure went smoothly, it didn't go undetected. Several trucks filled with people were bound to catch someone's attention. A spy spotted the trucks and immediately informed their leader. It also did not take long for the bodies of Akihiro and his men to be discovered. When news reached the leader, it was unclear whether the news that their target escaped or more of her subordinates were killed upset her more. However, one thing was clear. She was **pissed**.

"Damn it!" Estuko threw her plate into the nearest wall that shattered with a loud crash. Eating did little to alleviate her feelings as they erupted like a volcano. "That bitch butchered even more of our people! This cannot stand!" She dug her nails into her hand which left indentations of their own. "This will not stand! We are going to track them down and wipe them out! There will be no mercy!"

All of the subordinates in her chamber repeated, "No mercy!"

Estuko ordered, "We're leaving in two hours! All abled bodies better be ready! No exceptions!"

"Yes Ma'am!" When they all shouted back, they immediately set out of the room to prepare for their own Exodus.

When Estuko was left alone in her chamber she held the bloody rag that covered Akihiro's face. "Hmph …" Estuko crushed the rag and remarked, "She will pay for this, and I'll give you back what belongs to you."

/

Everything was dark, but there was light beginning to shine through. "Ugghh …" Kannagi Azumi groaned as she laid on the blankets that cocooned around her body. Her eyes were opening slightly before a sudden jolt caused her head to rise in the air and fall down which caused her eyes to open wide. "Wha- What?!"

Azumi's eyes darted all over the place to see a truck covering was hanging above her head, and she was lying in the transport truck with some of the other survivors. The truck then became bumpy again which shook her head again. "Wha?" Azumi's said in a louder tone.

Yu's attention was brought to his sister whose head he could see was moving. "Sis!" Yu called out which also caught the attention of their mother. He knelt next to Azumi as he happily said in relief, "You're awake!"

"Azumi!" Kaede said in a relieved tone. Tears were beginning to well up.

"Wha … What?" Azumi asked in a confused tone, "What's wrong? Do I look that bad?"

"You weren't exactly great." Yu remarked, "You've been asleep for almost two days."

Azumi's eyes widened in surprise as she shouted, "Two days?!" She attempted to move her body, but she felt something restraining her. "What the? What the hell?"

"Yeah …" Yu sheepishly replied, "Sorry about that Sis. The doctor suggested we restrain you while we're on the move."

"…" Azumi gritted her teeth uncomfortable at the thought of that.

"I'll let you out." Yu undid the straps, and Azumi was able to move again.

The first thing Azumi did was stretch her arms as she continued to remain sitting. The bumpy road the truck was on was not doing her any favors. "Ah …" Azumi winced when she felt the cracks in her body as she stretched.

"How are you feeling Azumi?" Kaede asked her daughter.

"Extremely uncomfortable." Azumi looked to Yu and asked, "Was I really out for two days?"

"Yeah." Yu confirmed. "You were out of it. Even Doc was surprised the drug he gave you put you out for that long. You must've been really tired from all that blood loss."

"Ah …" Azumi suddenly remembered the bandage and stiches that were still on her neck. She couldn't see them, but she could still feel their presence. Even with the bandage covering the stitches, it was hard for her not to ignore the foreign string that was attached to her body. "Damn …" Azumi remarked out loud, "That's not good at all."

"It was probably for the best." Yu mused, "Doc said you could use the rest, and I agree. You were pushing yourself a lot after losing so much blood. You're looking a lot better now than you did before."

"…" Azumi was silent as she remained sitting up straight.

Yu then suggested, "You might as well continue to rest. It might be a while before we decide to camp again, so try getting some more sleep."

"I agree." Kaede interjected. "You really should."

"Hmm … All right fine." Azumi reluctantly agreed as she laid her head on the blankets and the makeshift pillow underneath her. "Might as well I guess." When she closed her eyes, it didn't take her long to fall back to sleep.

Yu remarked, "She really does push herself."

"She's always been like that." Kaede mused, "Especially for you. She'll always make sure to protect you. To make sure you're okay. Like a big sister should do."

"…" Yu looked at his sleeping sister as he remarked, "I can protect her too …"

/

Eventually, Azumi and Yu's group was able to find a reasonable place to set up a temporary camp. They would only stay a few days at most to find some new supplies. Yu would be on the scavenging teams while Azumi was left behind to continue her recovery. After wishing Yu luck with his scavenging mission, Azumi decided to take care of some business of her own.

"Azumi." Kaede attempted to protest, "You should lie still a little longer. It's too early for you to be up and about just yet."

"I can lie down plenty after I make sure something is taken care of." As Azumi spoke, her back was to her mother. "I'll be back in a little bit. I promise."

"…" Her mother reluctantly decided to let her go.

Azumi met with Minato by the vehicles as she told him, "I didn't get a chance to tell you before I was put to sleep the other day. The spear you gave me worked well. It might be the reason I'm still alive."

Minato remarked, "Sounds like you choose the right weapon for me to forge"

"You're not kidding." Azumi crossed her arms as she told Minato, "I could've kept using my gun, but who knows if that could've attracted more Aragami. If that happened, we would've been royally screwed."

"Uggh …" Minato winced at the thought.

"At least we made it out alive this time, but we might not be so lucky next time." Azumi then inquired, "Are you sure all the motorcycles are ready?"

Minato replied, "Positive. I checked over every one of them myself."

"Good." Azumi stated with her arms crossed, "Something tells me we're probably going to need them soon."

"Ugh." Minato winced at Azumi's response. "That doesn't sound good."

Azumi shook her head, "It isn't supposed to."

"…" Minato remained silent.

"Ahem …" Azumi cleared her throat as she put her hand on her throat. She could faintly feel the scar left on her neck as she told Minato, "It's bad enough we need to worry about the Aragami. Now we need to worry about some psychos that are targeting us. All because I killed some of their members in self-defense."

Minato stood up and protested, "That's wasn't your fault."

"That doesn't matter." Azumi waved her hand. "It doesn't matter to them, and I'm sure it doesn't matter to some of the people here."

"It matters to me." Minato stated, "I'm on your side."

"…" Azumi was silent for a moment before replying, "I wish I was sure everyone else felt the same way." Azumi lightly bit her lip

"What do you mean by that?" Minato inquired, "Do you really think anyone in this group would stab you in the back or something?"

Azumi's teeth let go of her lip as she answered, "I'd hope not." She placed her hand on the bike's handlebar.

"Then …" Minato hesitantly asked, "Do you think it might happen?"

"…" Azumi didn't answer this time. Her eyes were focused on the motorcycle as she told Minato, "Just so you know Minato, I don't have any regrets killing those people. They all got what was coming to them." Azumi looked in Minato's direction and said, "There is only one of them I even remotely felt bad for, but I would've still done it all over again if I had to." Azumi curled her fingers into a fist which caused them to dig into her hand. "It was him or me. They were all threats and not only would I be dead, but my family would be dead too. If those people have to be dead so we can still be alive so be it. That's just how it has to be."

"Ah …" Minato had no idea how to respond to that. He was at a complete loss of words when he felt himself take a step back.

"Probably a lot to take in wasn't it?" Azumi mused.

"I … I didn't mean it like that." Minato scampered.

"Anyway, I have always appreciated your help." Azumi remarked, "So does my brother. He looks up to you."

"Me?" Minato pointed to himself.

"Who else am I talking to?" Azumi asked. "That's why I was hoping to ask you for another favor."

"Um … sure." Minato replied, "Name it."

"…" Azumi took a breath. She did her best to remain concise as she told Minato, "If something happens to me, I want you to look after my brother."

Minato was taken aback as his eyes widened slightly. "What?"

Azumi calmly answered. "You heard me."

Minato immediately inquired, "Where is this coming from?"

"From here." Azumi pointed towards the scar that moved along the left side of her neck. "If I'd been any slower, my head wouldn't be here. If something like that happens again, I might not be as 'fortunate.'" Azumi stated, "I want someone I trust to look after my brother."

"But …" Minato hesitantly asked, "What about your parents?"

"My father would've been dead if Yu and I hadn't been there." Azumi plainly stated, "If anything happened to me or father, mother would've been devastated. I don't know if she'd be able to care for him. She's not strong enough for this world. She'd been dead a long time ago if it weren't for father and me."

"But …" Minato reminded Azumi, "I'm not exactly a fighter either you know?"

"You're reliable." Azumi remained firm as she told him, "I know you'd look out for him."

Minato asked Azumi in a bewildered voice, "Do you really think I could? I'm not that much older than him you know? I'm pretty sure he could kick my ass if I wanted to fight him."

"That doesn't matter either. You can do other stuff." Azumi then stated, "I'd just want you to look out for him as a big brother. You think you could do that?"

"…" Minato briefly averted his eyes as he considered the request. "I'm not really sure what you expect from me, but I'll try if I have to …"

"Ah huff …" Azumi let out a deep breath before calmly telling Minato, "That's all I ask for. Thank you."

"You don't have to thank me … I- …" Minato cut himself off before then asking, "Anything else?"

"No." Azumi stated, "Just make sure everything stays ready just in case. You never know what might happen."

"Yeah, but we might be heading into the final stretch of this journey." Minato told Azumi, "I heard them talking about how we're not too far from Fenrir, so we might not need the motorcycles."

"All the more reason." Azumi stated, "It feels too good to be true."

Minato replied, "Let's just hope it isn't." His words should have had optimism, but his tone lacked it.

Azumi lowered her eyes and softly said, "Yeah …" She then turned around and said, "Just make sure things are ready just in case. Later." With that Azumi took her leave.

"…" Minato remained standing in the room without being able to say a word.

/

After their Exodus, Yu and Azumi's group remained on the move constantly for nearly three weeks. They drove during the day and only stopped for setting up temporary camps to refill the engine with their reserves. At the temporary camps, they'd only stay for a night or possibly a day. They kept scouting and scavenging to a minimum.

While they were on the road, the lookout would occasionally spot Aragami roaming in the distance. That would force the group to make a turn towards a scenic route in hopes the Aragami would not see or hear them. While this path was safer, it also meant that the amount of travel time had increased, and they'd be forced to use up more of their gas and supplies. Scavenging would be necessary.

This continuous travel did give Azumi an excuse to sit in the truck and let the wound on her neck heal. Azumi was never pleased about being placed on the sidelines whether it was for a good reason or not. It was barely tolerable for her.

Whenever they did have scouting, they were reluctant to let Azumi take part in it. Even if they let her, Azumi's role was kept a minimum. They didn't want her to carry something that could strain her while healing. They also didn't have too many options when it came to scouts. Likewise, Azumi wasn't thrilled about her limitations, and didn't like being in a bigger group, but she knew it was necessary and she did not enjoy being cooked up, so she decided to work with what she had until the day the doctor said she could take the stiches out.

Unsurprisingly, Azumi's father voiced his concerns on a regular basis. "Are you sure your stitches aren't getting affected by this?"

"I'm fine." Azumi replied.

"Don't worry father." Yu informed their father, "Mom and Doc have been changing the bandages regularly. They haven't seen anything wrong with her stiches."

"But aren't we using up a lot of bandages on this." Azumi pointed to her injury. "We should probably stop using so many of them. Otherwise, we're going to be wasting too much of the medical supplies."

"…" Haru was silent after hearing Azumi say that.

"You're not a waste Azumi!" Azumi looked over her shoulder to see that her mother happened to overhear what they were talking about. "You never could be, so don't say that again!"

"Hmm …" Azumi turned he body and asked, "Okay, but do we still have more."

Kaede assured her daughter, "We have plenty of supplies thanks to you and the other scavengers."

Azumi replied, "If you say so."

Kaede firmly stated, "I do."

Azumi then turned around and spoke to her father, "Anyway, my recovery is coming along fine. They're pretty sure I can be back in the action pretty soon."

"…" Haru didn't have much to say in response to that either. The silences certainly made the room rather awkward.

Yu pulled on Azumi's arm and said, "Sis! Don't forget that Yasuko wanted to teach you something about cooking."

"Right." Azumi nodded, "If you'll excuse me, I'll get going." With that Azumi made her exit.

/

Eventually Azumi's bandages could be removed. As with the injuries before, Azumi seeing another member of her 'collection' made her feel uneasy. She could feel the hairs on the side of her neck be torn out with every inch of bandage she removed which caused her to wince. It was a feeling she felt she should be used to, but he wasn't. Most likely she never could get used to this feeling.

When the bandage was removed, Azumi opened her eyes to see the latest addition through the mirror. She could see the stiches across her neck stretched further than she thought. The attack may have been a nick, but she could see the wound cut around the left side of her neck. Azumi believed the wound might've widened because the moving around she did prior to receiving appropriate medical attention. Even though the wound had 'apparently' healed, it still looked as if the stitches were the only thing keeping it in place. It almost made Azumi nervous to take them off, but she knew the time had come.

Azumi bit her lip and bared it as the doctor pulled the string out of her neck. Azumi shivered as the doctor did so. With every inch the string moved, it felt as if a worm or a snake was slivering underneath her skin.

 **Thump! Thump!**

Without realizing it, Azumi's heart felt as if it was beating a hundred miles an hour, and it was about to burst out of her chest. "Ah huff …" Azumi's breath also became heavier with each breath she took. However, she remained still and let him do his job.

The sense of relief Azumi felt when it was over was difficult to describe. However, she could feel that her heartbeat had returned to normal and her breathing became steadier.

"Doesn't that feel much better?" 'Doctor' Araki calmly asked. 

"Yeah, but it doesn't look better." Azumi mused.

Without the stitches and bandages, Azumi could see the clear view of the scar. It was a rough jagged cut that went around the left side of her neck that looked like it might as well have a 'tear off here' line above it. Azumi was fortunate enough that the wound didn't circle around her entire neck. She could thank her years of fighting and reflexes for that.

Azumi then asked, "So … what do you think doc?"

The doctor answered, "Based on my observations, you appear to be in the clear. You haven't experienced any more bleeding from your neck right?"

"No …" Azumi hesitantly replied, "but wouldn't you notice if I was bleeding there?"

"True, but it is better to be safe and make sure you aren't keeping anything from me." The good doctor said with a smile.

"Don't worry." Azumi put her hand on her neck over the cut, "I'm not keeping anything from you. You can be sure of that."

"Then why are you covering your neck?" The doctor asked.

"Oh." Azumi let go of her neck and answered, "A lot's happened."

"Hmph." The doctor replied, "Very true. I can't say that I blame you for being worried. What you went through was quite painful and serious."

"Yeah …" Azumi mused, "If that's so painful, I could hardly imagine what it'd be like if he cut any deeper."

"Let's be grateful that he didn't." The doctor then said, "You're cleared to head back out there for scavenging if you wish to. Just in time for the final stretch."

"Hmph." Azumi smiled as she remarked, "I've been waiting for you to say that."

/

Yu was waiting outside of the temporary hospital room pacing around the door until he saw Azumi emerge from the door while covering the side of her neck with her hand. He nervously asked, "So Sis … how'd it go?"

"See for yourself." Azumi removed her hand.

"Oh …" Yu may have seen it before when it was 'fresh', but this was different as he tried to find the right words to say, "… well it doesn't look that bad."

"Very nice of you to say." Azumi remarked.

"I … I mean it." Yu replied, "It could've been worse."

"Yeah." Azumi put her hand on her neck as she bitterly remarked, "I could be dead. That'd be much worse."

"Um …" Yu uncomfortably stepped away.

Azumi sighed as she let go of her neck. "Just like all the others, I'll get used to it. There's no point in thinking about it. I can finally get back into the action now." 

"Already?" Yu asked taken aback. "You sure we should be doing that? You just got the stiches out."

"I've been on the sidelines long enough. I've only been able to do a little bit of scouting." Azumi flexed her arm and remarked, "Besides, my muscles could use a little more activity. Last thing I need is for them to flake out on me when I need them."

"Well … You got a point." Yu reluctantly admitted.

"Don't worry." Azumi patted her brother on the head.

"Hey!" Yu was unable to remove his sister's hand as it rubbed the top of his head.

"Heh. Heh." Azumi chuckled before letting go. "We're not gonna go far. See that building over there?'

Yu saw the mostly intact building that stood on the outskirts of their camp. "Yeah."

Azumi casually stated, "We're going to give that one a quick check, and then we'll be right back."

"Yeah." Yu dryly stated, "And I'm sure we'll either run into another group of psychos or spot an Aragami while we're in there."

"That doesn't always happen!" Azumi protested.

Yu shook his head. "Happens often enough."

"Pfft." Azumi asked as she started walking toward the building, "You coming or not?" 

"I'm coming. I'm coming." Yu caught up to his sister and asked, "You sure you're up for this?"

Azumi crossed her left arm with her right as she continued to walk, so she could stretch it out as she enthusiastically replied, "You better believe I am."

Amazingly enough, the mini-expedition to the building resulted in no incidents. Azumi and Yu were able to recover a few supplies for the group. Azumi could feel she was getting back into the groove, so she was ready and willing to tackle future scavenging missions for the remainder of their journey to Fenrir.

/

After a week of traveling to avoid the Aragami herds, Azumi and Yu's group were near the final stretch on their journey to Fenrir. They believed it would not be much further, but they had to pass by a rather chilling looking city. It would take an extremely long time to go around, so they decided to find out if they would have any luck moving through it. Azumi and Yu choose to scout ahead while the group had one last rest.

Haru gave Azumi a flare gun and warned her they only had enough to spare one. It went without saying that she could only use it in an emergency. Azumi placed it in a holster and the sibling duo made their way to a good vantage point in the city.

There was a tall building at the heart of the city that stood out. Not only was it indistinguishable due to it size compared to the other surviving buildings, but the large gaping hole in its center. It was as if something punched a hole through it. However, the teeth markings along the edges indicated that was not the case. Aragami eating through it seemed far more probable.

As the duo climbed the building to the roof on the stairwell, Yu's feet began to shake as he nervously asked, "Sis …" Azumi's ears perked when she heard her brother's shaky voice. She looked to see he was about a half a floor behind her when she heard him ask her, "Do you think this building will have any trouble holding the two of us?"

 **Crack!**

"Ah!" Yu turned around to see what it was. He couldn't tell if it was some rubble falling down for some reason or it was something else.

Azumi placed her hand on her waist as she remarked, "This building has managed to stand for fifteen to sixteen years even after Aragami ate part of it. I'm sure the two of us won't be enough to make it collapse."

 **Crack!**

"!" Both Azumi and Yu's ears perked upon hearing that which caused them to look up.

"Um …" Yu remained perfectly still as his attention was directed at where he believed the sound was coming from.

"That being said …" Azumi slowly moved her foot as she made her next footstep. "This building isn't exactly stable, so watch your step."

"Uggh …" Yu made his lack of enthusiasm known with a groan.

Azumi stated, "You know I wouldn't even think of going this high unless we needed to."

"I know. I know." Yu repeated as he made his way upward. "We need a vantage point."

"Yeah. No other even remotely stable building comes close. Let's keep moving." Azumi continued to make careful footsteps with Yu in tow.

 **Crack!**

Azumi took a deep breath whenever she heard that sound as she continued making her way up the stairs.

"Sis." Yu quietly asked his sister as he continued to follow behind her on the stairwell, "Why do Aragami eat buildings in the first place? Don't they eat us or other living things?"

"Well …" Azumi thought back to all she had seen of the Aragami in the past fifteen years. Even despite knowing of them that long, she didn't have the luxury of knowing too much about them. She gave the best answer she could. "I'm sure you can figured there aren't exactly enough of us to go around. I'm sure humans are their 'favorite dish,' but they're clearly capable of eating anything they want."

"So …" A hint of dread started to cloud Yu's head as he felt his heart sink. "So all these times … When we were hiding in buildings … Aragami could've eaten it and found us?"

Azumi honestly answered, "They could've."

"Eh …" Yu could feel his entire body shake.

"But they didn't Yu." Azumi remained facing away from Yu when she answered, "That's what's important. Let's focus on that."

Yu continued to shiver as he replied, "I- I don't care. It's still pretty scary."

"Yu …" Azumi stopped walking and turned around to face her brother. She placed her hand on his shoulder and told him, "If anything like that did happen, I would do everything I can to make sure you get out alive."

"Ah …" Yu couldn't find the words to respond. They were moving through his head faster than he could comprehend. "But … But …"

"No 'buts.'" Azumi removed her hand from his shoulder as she declared, "I would protect you."

"Aragami can't be hurt by normal weapons. Only God Eaters can hurt them right?" Yu asked.

"That doesn't matter." Azumi shook her head. "You know me Yu. You know I'd do what I can to help you, and you know I'll always pull through. You know that right?"

"I … Yes." Yu nervously nodded his head. "Of course."

"Hmph." Azumi smiled before she briefly ruffled her brother's hair again as she happily said, "That's much better." Azumi then continued the trek up the staircase.

"Since we're talking about buildings, did Aragami really make that big hole?" Yu inquired.

Azumi answered, "Looks that way."

"Why would they eat only the center but not the whole thing?" Yu asked, "Why would they leave the building standing?"

Azumi shrugged her shoulders as she pressed on, "No idea. I've been around Ara- Gah!"

 **CRACK!**

Azumi's foot broke through the floor between the staircases. Azumi felt her body suddenly shift down as nothing was left to support her left foot. Gravity took a hold of Azumi's foot before her mind could comprehend the situation. Thankfully the hole that was formed wasn't big enough for her entire body to fit through.

"Sis!" Yu attempted to rush to Azumi's side.

"Hold on!" Azumi raised her hand. "I'm fine! Don't come any closer!" Yu looked down to see the cracks in the floor surrounding Azumi and backed away. "Good. Now just …" Azumi grabbed onto her leg and slowly began to lift it out of the floor. "… give me … a second … I can … Grrh!" Azumi slowly pulled her leg out and freed herself as she dragged her body away from the cracks.

"Sis …" Yu asked, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." Azumi picks herself up and brushes herself off. "Ahem. Like I said earlier … not entirely stable."

Yu asked, "Should we head back?"

"No." Azumi looked up as she replied, "We're close. We shouldn't let this be for nothing."

"Even with that vantage point, will it really do us much good?" Yu pointed out, "I mean even if we don't see Aragami in the entire area, couldn't they show up between when we head back and get moving?"

"Hmm …" Azumi admitted, "Yes, but the chances are less likely if we move quickly. That's why we didn't set up camp remember?"

Yu sighed, "I know. I understand. Let's get this over with."

"That's slightly better." Azumi directed Yu, "Just watch your foot there."

"Hmm …" Yu slowly made his way across, and they continued their way up the stairs.

/

After they arrived at the rooftop, they saw for themselves the vantage point gave them a bird eye's view of the surrounding area. Thanks to their binoculars, they were able to see almost everything in the remnants of this city. It did not take them long to spot Aragami a few miles from their positon. The Aragami they spotted appeared to be doing their equivalent of 'grazing.' They were eating a few of the smaller buildings in the city.

Yu said in awe. "You know what. I take it back Sis. I take it all back. This vantage point was definitely a good idea."

"Hmm …" Azumi observed, "They're in the direction we need to go, but we can go around them. Since they seem to be taking their time eating, they might stay there for a while, so we might be able to go down those roads without catching their attention."

While they were observing, Yu asked, "You know it's been weeks since we last encountered those psychos. Do you really think they'd come after us?"

"We killed a whole bunch of their guys. They're pissed, and I'm sure they might notice a group of people leaving the city." Azumi stated in a matter of fact tone, "If they know we fled that city, they'll follow. There's not a doubt in my mind."

"Man." Yu leaned on the edge of the building as he remarked, "You're probably right, but that totally sucks."

Azumi sighed, "I think it goes without saying Yu, but I never wanted you to live this kind of life." Yu's ears perked. "You deserved better. Much better."

"You mean how things used to be?" Yu inquired as he moved away from the edge.

Azumi looked in Yu's direction as she told him, "I may not remember much, but I wish you had been able to at least see it."

"I wished I did too, but it's as father said, 'What's past is prologue.'" Yu stated.

"'What's past is prologue.'" Azumi repeated.

Yu casually replied, "We can't change the past, but we can change the present right?"

"Right." Azumi stated, "There are only two types of people in this world. Those that live and those that die."

"Hmm …" Yu nodded in agreement.

"Actually," Azumi hesitantly changed her statement, "I was wrong about that … No one lives in this world."

Yu titled his head. "What?"

Azumi corrected herself, "I mean the people in this world are the ones who either die or survive."

"Um …" Yu raised an eyebrow. "Isn't surviving and living the same thing?"

"No it's not." Azumi shook her head. "Living and surviving are two different things. Believe me." Azumi stated, "Because of the world we live in Yu, you've never had the chance to 'live.' You've only been able to survive."

"Then …" Yu averted his eyes as he asked, "… How do we live?"

"I'm not sure, but … I know it's not like this. I guess we'll have to figure it out together." Azumi suggested, "Maybe Fenrir can give us the chance for that. All the more reason why we need to figure out how to get through here." Azumi returned to observing the Aragami through her binoculars. Yu did the same.

/

The siblings continued to observe the Aragami and the empty areas as thoroughly as possible. Yu kept checking each area over as he said, "I'm not seeing any more in other areas."

Azumi stated, "We still need to be sure. We'll need to keep our eyes peeled on those other areas to be sure."

"Hmm …" Yu then turned his attention to where he saw the Aragami earlier, and he then looked over to see the empty areas and then back to the Aragami before he then said out loud, "Small buildings …"

Azumi looked over to her brother. "What is it Yu?" 

Yu looked at the Aragami again and stated his observation. "They seem to only be eating the smaller buildings, but they leave the bigger ones alone."

"Hmm." Azumi checked for herself only to say in awe. "Wow! You're right Yu!"

Yu then asked, "Have they … always been like that?"

Azumi continued to observe the Aragami as she answered, "To be honest, I've never had a chance to observe them like this."

"Hmm …" Yu looked through his binoculars to compare the states of the various buildings. "From what I'm seeing they're hardly touching the bigger buildings."

"…" Azumi could feel a light bulb turn on in her head as she said, "I think you might've helped me figure something out."

"What is it Sis?" Yu inquired.

"About why they didn't eat this entire building." A smirk appeared on Azumi's face as she stated, "I think I know why."

Yu raised his eyebrow in interest. "Really?"

Azumi nodded, "Yeah, but I don't think you're gonna like it."

Yu shook his head and shrugged his shoulders as he casually asked, "When is there anything to like about Aragami?"

"Good point. Ahem." Azumi cleared her throat and said, "Anyway, I think I might have an idea for what they're doing. If I'm right, I think they left this tower standing here on purpose."

"What?" Yu was taken aback by that. "Are you serious?"

"Think about it Yu." Azumi pointed out, "People are way more likely to notice a big building than one of those smaller ones they're feasting on. Buildings like that draw people to it. Like this tower drew us to it."

Yu was not thrilled by where this was going as he nervously replied, "But … I thought Aragami were mindless monsters."

Azumi replied, "I thought so too, but what if they aren't? What if they're a hell of a lot smarter than we thought?"

Yu bluntly answered, "Then I'd say we're screwed."

"Yeah." Azumi crossed her arms as she stated, "That's definitely one way of putting it, but it also makes sense too. When I was younger Aragami did seem to eat more furiously than they do now."

Yu tilted his head. "More furiously?"

"Yes." Azumi took a breath before she started to explain, "They ate a lot more or rather they ate pretty much everything. Then they eventually started to eat less. Rather than eating the building we hid in, they were more likely to pass them. It was like their eating habits had altered for some reason. Assuming we didn't draw their attention, they'd generally leave the buildings we were in alone. Now that I think about it, most of them were pretty big buildings."

"Big buildings … Hold on!" Yu held out his hands to form a T symbol. "Back up! Do you think Aragami left those buildings alone so they would … they could …"

"Draw more people." Azumi finished Yu's sentence. "Based on what I've seen, I'm pretty sure that's the case."

"So … So …" Yu could feel his body beginning to sweat a little as he inquired, "… all those times we survived when we hid in the buildings was due to how the Aragami were using them to draw more of us?"

"That's right." Azumi felt a sense of dread as she spoke, "They'd only attack those buildings if something attracted them. Namely any sounds we made."

"…" Yu bit his lip.

"That's why they're so focused on smaller buildings. They wouldn't draw people, so they're fair game." Azumi continued her speculation, "When smaller buildings are all eaten, they'll work their way up until there's nothing left and nowhere left to hide."

"We need to get to Fenrir!" Yu stated.

"You're preaching to the Choir. Chances are that in a while places like that will be all that's left." Azumi looked through her binoculars to see the feasting Aragami again. "Anyway, we need to see if we can spot any other Aragami or areas Aragami aren't likely to check out." Suddenly something unusual could be seen passing by, "We'll need to … What the hell?!"

Yu's eyes widened as he asked, "What is it?"

Azumi looked up from her binoculars and pointed. "Look over there! Look in that direction!"

Yu was looking through his binoculars as he saw something he didn't expect. "I don't see … Holy crap! What the hell am I seeing?"

Azumi replied, "People … They're are people down there, and they have really … really big weapons."

Yu looked over to Azumi. "Sis … Could they be … Could they be …"

"God Eaters!" Azumi once again finished Yu's sentence. "That's exactly who I think they are."

"What should we do?" Yu eagerly asked.

"Watch." Azumi said with a grin. "Looks like we're about to get a front row seat to them in action."

"Hmph. Sounds like a plan to me." Yu suddenly remembered, "Oh! Speaking of eating and action, do you want to eat our lunch up here Sis?" Yu suggested with a grin, "It's not every day we get to eat this high up and watch something like this."

"Sure why not." Azumi and Yu unpacked their lunches, so they could take their break to watch a show they'd never forget.

/

 **Author Notes** : After five chapters, we finally get to encounter the God Eaters even if they are from a distance. It was my plan for Azumi and Yu to witness the God Eaters in action. The rough draft for the concluding scene of this chapter was written last year, and it is great to finally make use out of it. I have several other future scenes that have the rough draft treatment, and I hope to make use of them in the near future as well.

I do not plan on having the next chapter skip on the much awaited God Eater action. You will see the God Eaters fight the Aragami next time. It'll be cathartic to portray this scene due to how the Aragami have been a problem for the regular human characters, such as Azumi and Yu. However, it will be my first attempt at writing a God Eater fight. I've seen fights in the anime and video game. I'll do my best to do a good first fight scene against the Aragami, and I will attempt to build on that in the future.

On another note, I'm glad that the sister-brother relationship between Azumi and Yu has been consistently well received. Some of my readers told me that it is difficult to pull off a good relationship like that, and it has been done well for these two. It makes me happy to read comments like that. I hope you will continue to enjoy the sibling relationship the two share.

Speaking of which, what were your thoughts on Azumi wanting Minato to take care of Yu? Did you think it was justified? Was it in character for her? Is she being cruel to her parents for trusting Minato over them? I'd definitely like to know your thoughts on the situation.

As usual, please provide a review for the work I did for this chapter. The feedback is always appreciated, and it can be a great motivator. Happy Halloween 2017. See you next time.


	6. Destination Fenrir – Part Two

**Author Notes** : This marks the second anniversary of the story. I was personally hoping to have released more chapters for this story by now, but things don't always work out. I originally wanted to produce this chapter for March 2018, but I had some difficulty with writing this chapter. This was partly due to the Persona 5 anime that would air during the Spring and Summer 2018 seasons, so the priority of my writing had to be focused on my other story, "Into the Fog." As a result, this chapter has been in development hell for a few months, so I was glad that I finally decided to get to it.

Last chapter ended on a cliffhanger with Azumi and Yu spotting some Aragami and God Eaters. This chapter will continue directly where the previous chapter left off. At first planning the God Eater fight had some difficulty, but I think it worked out in the end. I hope you will agree with that assessment after you read the chapter.

I decided that Azumi and Yu are watching the fight from that partly destroyed Skyscraper that you occasionally see in the God Eater games. I figured that it would give them an excellent vantage point to spot Aragami for their group while also being far enough away to avoid the detection of the monsters.

So far throughout this story, I have revived some positive feedback regarding how I have handled the sibling relationship between Azumi and Yu. I'm grateful for those of you who have provided feedback on that. Developing the sibling dynamic between the two of them was a challenge, but it has been fun. I hope you will also continue to enjoy their relationship as this story progresses.

As usual, I hope you all enjoy reading this chapter, and please provide feedback. Some of the previous chapters have had disappointing numbers when it comes to receiving reviews. If you can leave feedback, it would be greatly appreciated.

/

Past is Prologue

Story Arc One – Surviving in the Wild – Part VI

Chapter Six – Destination Fenrir – Part Two – God Eater Encounter

/

Those things are monsters

We have always been in fear

Now it is their turn

/

A city that was slowly being consumed by Aragami. Buildings that could be used as sanctuaries for people wandering the worldwide wasteland were becoming scarcer with each passing moment. Aside from eating people, the Aragami diet appeared to include the consumption of buildings among other things. At the rate they were eating, there would eventually be nowhere else left to hide outside of places like Fenrir.

Azumi and Yu had climbed on top of the remnants of the city's large skyscraper, and they were able to get a view unlike any other in this city or anywhere else they had been. Unfortunately, they couldn't spend their time enjoying the 'sights' even if they wanted to. Using their vantage point, they were able to see there were at least three other Aragami in the area. All of them were Orgetails. They were all preoccupied with eating buildings.

Even though it appeared that eating buildings was sufficient to temporarily satisfy the Aragami's hunger, they would jump at the opportunity to eat a human if they ever noticed him or her. At least, that's what Azumi and Yu had come to understand after witnessing it first hand on a number of occasions. Luckily for them, they were perched on top of what was left of a skyscraper. They were far enough away that the Aragami didn't notice them.

Today also proved to be their lucky day for another reason entirely. A reason neither of them had expected. They saw more than just Aragami from their vantage point. They saw something else. Something they had been hoping to see for a long time. The answer to their prayers. God Eaters.

/

One of the God Eaters was a man by the name of Amamiya Lindow. He had dark hair and grayish eyes. He wore a brown coat that had many pockets that all appeared to have something in them. He also wore a black shirt that he had the zipper partly down and gray pants. One thing that stood out about his attire was that he had a large red bracelet that was attached to his right wrist. Additionally, he was carrying around what appeared to be a Zanbatō, which should be too heavy for an ordinary man to carry, but he was casually carrying it around like it was nothing.

Despite hearing the sounds of monsters munching on the buildings, Lindow leaned against the wall and opened up his upper chest pocket. In that pocket contained his favorite brand of cigarettes. He pulled one out and used his lighter to light it up. He then breathed in the fumes before his breath released the toxic smoke.

"Do you really have time for that?" A female voice asked him over the radio.

"I'm sure you already know the answer to that." Lindow casually replied as he held the cigarette between his fingers.

"…" There was no response over the radio.

"You in position yet?" Lindow asked before putting the cigarette back in his mouth.

"Just another minute." The female voice responded.

"Okay." Lindow replied before getting back to business.

Lindow was the leader of one the God Eater teams in Fenrir. His team was well known for having a higher survival rate compared to other God Eater teams. It didn't matter if one of the teammates they had was considered harbinger of death. He always gave simple orders that his subordinates had no issue following.

Contrary to how Lindow would tell his teammates to stay alive and healthy, he had a habit of constantly having a cigarette in his mouth. He still had one hanging from his mouth when he was leaning against the wall. Based on how he was casually leaning against it, most wouldn't think he was in the middle of a battlefield. After taking a puff, he then started to move towards the edge of the wall while holding the cigarette between his fingers.

When Lindow moved his head, he saw the three Aragami they were told about in the briefing. Lindow then moved his head back into hiding. He put the cigarette back in his mouth. He took another breath and blew out the smoke again. He removed the cigarette before he spoke to his other teammates through their communication link, "Okay. It doesn't look like they've noticed us. They're still stuffing their faces into those buildings. Everyone else in position?"

"Ugh …" A female voice replied in disgust, "I wish they didn't have to eat like that."

"It's better than watching them eat a person." Lindow casually remarked while flicking the cigarette away.

"Yeah. I know. I know." The female voice impatiently replied.

Lindow leaned back on the wall again as he asked, "I take it that you're in position?"

"Yes, I'm in position. I got a bird's eye view of them." The female voice sounded eager as she said, "If they try running, I'll get them before they can round the corner. Just tell me when."

"I'm in position too." A younger male voice could be heard on the radio.

"All right." Lindow looked over the corner again and instructed them, "On my signal, Soma and I will charge at two different Aragami. Sakuya will first shoot the one closest to me then shoot the one that Soma's target. What we do about the third will depend on what it does." After giving his instruction he then inquired, "Understood?"

The female voice identified as Sakuya replied, "Understood."

Soma answered in a bored tone, "As long as it works."

"I'll take that as a 'yes' from you." Lindow looked over the corner again. He held up three fingers before quietly beginning his countdown over the radio, "Three … Two … One … Go!"

 **Bang!**

What sounded like a massive gunshot could be heard, echoing in the remnants of the city. Azumi and Yu both jumped at the sound. They could feel their hearts skip a beat. The sound caused their ears to perk and eyes widen. Their eyes would remain widened upon witnessing what happened next.

The siblings had both seen bullets bounce off an Aragami's body like they were made of rubber. However, unlike any other bullet, this bullet made contact with the Aragami's head. The bullet forced the Aragami's armored head to jerk to the side. Upon impact, the armor began to crack. The monster was stunned which gave the chain-smoking God Eater Lindow the opportunity to rush his target.

 **Bang!**

A second gunshot was heard, and it made contact with the second. It had the same reaction as the first. It was knocked off balance and incapable of understanding what had happened. A young boy who couldn't have been older than a teenager was rushing towards the monster. He wore a blue jacket and hood that covered him, and he was carrying a massive sword like Lindow, but he held it like it was nothing.

Both Lindow and Soma were charging at their respective targets at full throttle. Both of them raised their swords and cut into their respective targets. Their swords cut into the furry parts of their targets' bodies with no resistance. Before the monsters could give counter attack, Lindow slashed the monster again, but it was not enough to kill it.

With each attack Lindow and Soma inflicted on their targets, blood could be seen gushing out of the monster's wounds. Azumi and Yu could not help but gaze upon this sight in surprise. They had no idea that red blood flowed through these monsters veins like theirs. However, they couldn't help but feel a sense of satisfaction with that. A smile could be seen creeping up Azumi's face while Yu's became slack-jawed with awe.

Upon seeing the first two being dealt with, they looked to see what would happen with the third Aragami. When it came to Aragami, they tended to either attack a God Eater that was harming one of their own, or they would run away. Sometimes they would do both. The third Aragami decided to make an escape attempt.

Lindow used his radio to call his sniper, "We got a runner."

"No problem!" Lindow heard Sakuya's voice from the radio.

 **Bang!**

Before the monster could escape, another shot hit it in the armored head. Feeling the shot forcing its head back caused the monster eyesight to become shaky. The monster slowed down making it a sitting duck. Then shots began raining down on it before one of the shots managed to hit its leg, and it came crashing down on the ground. As the monster was knocked down, the shots stopped coming.

"Damn …" The female sniper remarked as she then attempted to quickly charge her weapon.

"Grh …" The monster whined upon being grounded.

The monster that Lindow was dealing with attempted to launch a counter attack. It spun its tail around, but Lindow saw the attack coming and jumped back. He jumped further back than ordinary people would be able to do, and he was faster too. He then quickly attacked the Orgetails' exposed side. His blade once again sliced into the furry side of the monster. The force of the attack was strong enough to knock the monster off balance, and it fell to the ground.

Before the monster could get up, Lindow gripped his weapon tightly with the hand that had the red bracelet attached to his wrists as he activated his God Arc. His large blade suddenly changed from something that appeared to be a regular weapon into something that was 'alive'. The sword now looked like it was a giant mouth. Lindow thrusted his blade forward, and the 'teeth' of this mouth latched onto the Aragami.

"Gah!" The Aragami cried out, but the hold the God Arc had on this monster was absolute. It wasn't able to break out of the hold that Lindow had on it. The God Arc was draining the life out of it. Blood was pouring out of where the God Eater's teeth had clamped on it.

Lindow then pulled his blade away, and the teeth ripped out a chunk of the monster's body. Then the God Arc returned it its original form of a Zanbatō. This monster would not be putting up any resistance. Its function had ceased.

Following the monster's death, Lindow witnessed a familiar sight as he checked to see if his cigarettes were still in his pocket. The Aragami began to fade away leaving only the bloody stains on the ground as a reminder of its existence. He looked over the see that Soma was finishing his monster off as well. Then he looked to see Sakuya had the last Aragami pinned down due to her sniper fire.

"Heh." Lindow activated his God Arc again. "That makes my job easier." He contacted Sakuya, you can stop firing, I'll finish it.

"Understood." Sakuya immediately followed through with her orders.

Lindow then rushed the monster and thrusted his blade at it again. The monster was unable to resist the teeth of Lindow's God Arc. It would only be a matter of moments before their mission was complete.

/

In the distance, Azumi and Yu had witnessed the action unfold through their binoculars. When they lowered their binoculars, the siblings both had their mouths wide open. They weren't sure if it was out of awe or horror. What they had witnessed was something that would never be possible for either of them.

"Holy shit …" Azumi said in a mixture of amazement and nervousness as her lips trembled.

"Those God Eaters …" Yu hesitantly stated, "They took down those Aragami like they were nothing. That was …" Yu's face lit up as he shouted as he jumped up in the air, "That was so awesome! Holy crap! That was awesome! What a show!"

"Yeah …" Azumi's voice was far more subdued than her brother's.

"That's it? Come on!" Yu nudged his sister in the back. "Isn't this what we've been waiting to see? We heard God Eaters can do this kind of stuff, but this was awesome!"

"Hmm …" Azumi then looked through her binoculars again, "They definitely look like they can handle themselves.

"What's wrong?" Yu asked, "You look like you're disappointed."

"Hmm …" Azumi looked in her binoculars again as she then looked at something else that caught her attention, "It was a good show, but there's something a little 'off' about what I'm seeing." Azumi pointed at the scene below and told her brother, "See that building over there. The tall building that kinda looks like a lookout tower. I'm sure you can see it."

"Okay …" Yu looked through the binoculars to see the female God Eater. She was carrying a massive gun with two hands, and she had a red bracelet on her right wrist as well. However, there was a massive discrepancy in her attire. "Whoa …"

"Glad to see you noticed." Azumi replied in a deadpan tone.

"Pretty hard not to." Yu said while still looking through the binoculars. The female God Eater was wearing clothes that one would not expect to wear on the battlefield. She was wearing a revealing black top that showed off a great deal of her skin, especially her back. It looked more like an outfit that one would wear to a party rather than a fight.

"Those uniforms ..." Azumi cringed at the sight of the female God Eater's uniform.

"Yeah …" Yu kept switching between the male God Eaters and the female God Eater as he pointed out, "The guys are dressed normally, but the girl … She's not … Well …" Yu uncomfortably looked at Azumi as he bluntly stated, "She's kinda dressed the opposite of you."

"What the hell is she wearing?!" Azumi blurted out loud, "That better not be some kind of weird female uniform." Azumi felt embarrassed at the very idea.

"Uniform?!" Yu pulled his eyes away from the binoculars. "Are you …" Yu's voice sounded fearful as he asked, "Are you saying if you become a God Eater, they'd force you to …"

"Hell no! Hell, hell no! I wouldn't be caught dead looking like that! That would be …" Azumi cringed, "Ugh … That would be just wrong on **so many levels**."

"I know." Yu remarked, "I could never picture you wearing something like that

Azumi put her hand on her brother's shoulder and firmly warned him, "Never picture me like that. **Never**."

Yu furiously shakes his head and hands as he said, "I won't. I wouldn't want you wearing something like that."

"…" Azumi remained looking at her brother who kept shaking his head.

"I'm being serious." Yu stated, "That'd be crazy! I wouldn't want people looking at you like that! Not in a million years!"

"…" After an awkward moment, the two siblings look down at the remains of the battle of the God Eaters. Azumi looked through to see the God Eaters were still communicating with each other. Azumi stated, "… Okay then. Let's try to forget that … Uniform discrepancy aside, I think we found ourselves an escort to Fenrir." Azumi pulled out her flare gun and said, "This might be risky Yu, but this is our best chance to get their attention. Hope you're okay with this."

Yu replied, "I'm fine with it. How we use the flare gun is your call anyway."

"All right!" Azumi pointed the flare gun in the air. "Here goes nothing!" She pulled the trigger and the flare went flying in the air and lit up the sky. 

Yu grimaced, "Let's hope they come before another Aragami does."

"Yep." Azumi raised her hands waved in hopes of getting their attention.

"Hmm …" Yu paid attention to their activity on the ground. At first they didn't appear to be moving in their direction, "Are they … All right! It worked! I think they're coming!"

"All right!" Azumi excitedly replied, "We did it!"

/

After watching Lindow finish off the third Aragami, Sakuya couldn't help but feel satisfied from her position. "Heh." Sakuya chuckled as she proudly said, "That's the last of them."

With the last Aragami out of the way, Lindow then pulled out a fresh cigarette from his breast pocket. After lighting it up, he breathed in his cigarette and huffed the smoke before remarking over the radio, "Good work. As expected. Now let's all …" Suddenly Lindow heard something that sounded like a bang. He looked up to see lights in the air. "Hmm?"

"…" The young Soma looked up into the sky but gave no comment to what he was seeing.

Lindow softly asked in surprise, "Flares?" 

Sakuya was tending to her weapon from her lookout spot when she heard something behind her. She looked up to see the red flare light up the sky. As soon as she saw it, she contacted her superior, "Lindow! Look over there!"

"That was definitely a flare." Lindow sounded more serious about seeing the flare than dealing with the Aragami.

"Hey!" Sakuya's voice could be heard on Lindow's radio as she asked, "Is that supposed to be HQ? Are there other God Eaters out here we didn't know about?" 

"I don't think so." Lindow pulled out his binoculars from his coat and looked through. He adjusted the magnification to faintly see two distinct fingures at the top of the skyscrapper's remanents, and he saw that one of them waving to them from the top. "Uh huh."

"Do you see something?" Sakuya's voice could be heard again.

Lindow responded to his radio, "It looks like we've got an audience today.

"An audience?" Sakuya then asked over the radio, "Are you talking about more civilians that managed to survive out here?"

Lindow breathed in and let out a breath full of smoke before he answered, "Looks that way."

Sakuya stated, "They were probably using that tower as a vantage point to keep an eye out for Aragami. Pretty good thinking."

"What now?" Soma impatiently asked.

"Well …" Lindow scratched the back of his head as he nonchalantly replied, "Based on those flares, I think they'd like to have a chat with us. Want to go meet them?"

"Of course." Sakuya replied without hesitation. "Now that we know there are other people, we're not just gonna leave them up there. We shouldn't turn them away."

"Good answer." Lindow sounded pleased. Lindow then turned his head to look at his other companion who had his back turned to him as he looked at his God Arc. "That's a 'yes' from her. I trust you don't have a problem with this Soma?"

"Hmph." Soma replied in a bored tone, "I don't really care, but 'he' might get pissed if we let this go." Lindow could hear Soma sighing as he placed his weapon on top of his shoulder and began walking towards the tower, "Let's just get it over with."

Lindow coyly asked, "I'll take that as a 'yes' then?"

Soma merely said as he kept walking, "Fine. Whatever."

"Okay, then." Lindow looked through his binoculars again. He could still see the two distinct figures up there. Lindow couldn't help but grin in amusement as he remarked, "It is interesting to see people enjoy the show. Let's get to know our new fans then." Lindow then used his radio to communicate with headquarters, "Hibari. Change of plans. Inform Gen's team we won't be heading towards the rendezvous point. We just saw outsider civilians use a flare gun near our vicinity. Gonna go check it out. Over!"

Hibari replied, "Copy that! Report back immediately after you've completed your investigation. Over."

"Copy that. Over." Lindow then issued his orders, "All right everyone. Move out towards the flare. Over."

/

The two siblings remained on top of the skyscraper as they waited for the God Eaters to arrive. She saw they were moving towards their position far faster than they could on foot. Azumi could see through her own binoculars that the God Eaters were heading in their direction. Azumi grinned at the sight of that, but she could also feel a tense feeling in her stomach. It felt as if it was starting to tie up in knots. She attempted to massage her stomach and relax when she noticed something. She observed that her brother's hands were shaking. Yu tried to stop himself from shaking by holding himself, but it was to no avail.

"Hmm?" Azumi looked at her brother and asked, "Are you okay?"

"I …" Yu nervously pointed out, "Sis … Those guys just ripped those Aragami apart. We're going to be talking to them …" His previous amazing and awe was completely gone as he spoke, "If we piss them off, they could do the same to us."

"…" Azumi couldn't think of anything to refute what her brother just said. The awestruck feeling he felt had clearly faded. Instead, Azumi kneeled down and put her hand on her brother's shoulder, "Listen Yu. Let me do the talking." Azumi pointed toward a potential hiding place as she suggested, "You can hide over there if you want."

"Mmm …" Yu looked for a moment before looking back at Azumi and shook his head. "No. I'll stay here. We came here together. We're facing this together."

"Hmph." Azumi grinned and patted her brother's shoulder, "Good man."

"Heh …" Yu attempted to smile. Suddenly he felt Azumi's hand weigh down on his head. "Huh?"

"You're still a bit of a squirt though." Azumi playfully mused while she rustled Yu's hair.

"Hey! Cut that out!" Yu protested as he attempted to shake off Azumi's grip to her amusement. After Azumi let go, she became serious again.

/

When the God Eaters finally arrived, Azumi could immediately noticed the divergence between God Eaters and normal people. On the outside, they appeared to be ordinary people, but they carried themselves differently, and it wasn't due to the massive weapons they could wield. Azumi could feel an aura emitting from all three of them.

It was an aura that Azumi didn't know how to describe. It was completely foreign to her which caused her to feel uneasy and tense up. She silently gulped as her eyes widened. She did her best to keep her eyes normal while speaking.

This aura was different from any other person that Azumi had ever encountered. It was as if Azumi could sense their power just by being near them. She may have seen them in action, but it was different being this close. She could feel her right foot reflexively moving back.

"Well um …" Azumi closed her eyes, held up her hand, and awkwardly waved, "Hello God Eaters. I see you got my message."

"…" Yu was not doing much better as he softly gulped. He found himself hiding being his sister, much to his dismay.

"We did." Lindow took a step forward with a cigarette in his mouth while his two companions remained in place. "I take it you saw quite a show from up here."

"Yeah …" Azumi did her best to compliment them, "My brother and me saw the whole thing. It was pretty amazing how you took down Aragami like that. You were incredible." Azumi put her hands together and slightly bowed her head as she praised them, "It really is an honor to meet a God Eater personally." As they spoke, Azumi noticed that all three God Eaters appeared to be wearing a red bracelet on their right wrist.

"Thank you." Lindow grinned as he pulled the cigarette from this mouth and graciously accepted the praise, "It's always a pleasure to meet a fan of our work. Although, I'm sure you wish to do more than congratulate us." 

"Yes." Azumi put her hand on her chest as she introduced herself, "My name is Azumi. Kannagi Azumi." She then put her hand on Yu's shoulder as she said, "This here is my little brother Yu."

Yu slightly bowed as he said, "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Hmph." Lindow looked amused as he commented, "Didn't expect that. Good to see the kid's got some manners. I take it he gets it from you?"

Azumi replied, "I do my best to keep his head on straight."

"Hmm …" Yu looked away in embarrassment.

"I can see that. Anyway, since you introduced yourselves, we should do the same." Lindow flicked his cigarette away. He then stuck out his thumb and pointed at his chest, "My name is Amamiya Lindow. I'm the leader of this particular team." He then gestured his companions. "And these two are …" Lindow intentionally cut off his sentence.

"Tachibana Sakuya." The scantily clothed female God Eater spoke in a pleasant voice, "It is pleasure to meet you as well."

" _At least she's nice …"_ Azumi couldn't help but think that while trying not to focus on her.

The other companion who wore a blue jacket also had darker skin and lighter hair than either of his companions. He also appeared to be around Yu's age which starkly contrasted to his companions who seemed to be closer to Azumi's age. The only thing this silent God Eater contributed to this conversation was his introduction, "Schicksal Soma."

Azumi graciously replied as she clapped her hands together, "It is an honor to meet you all. My brother and I are part of a larger group that's heading to Fenrir. We were sent out to scout ahead for Aragami activity when we came upon you."

Sakuya summed up her conclusion, "So you two really were using this building for a vantage point? Good judgment, but a little risky."

"Yes …" Azumi uneasily replied as she recalled their ascent, "Getting up here was quite difficult, but I think it worked out. Thank you for the compliment Tachibana-san."

"There's no need to be so formal." Sakuya assured her, "You can call me Sakuya-san if you wish Azumi-san."

"Um …" Azumi was briefly taken aback, but she nodded her head and replied, "Okay."

"Hmph." Lindow remarked in a deadpan tone, "So your group sent a couple of kids to take care of some of the hard work. That sounds very familiar."

"We're not kids …" Azumi then glanced at her brother and backpedaled, "Well he is, but I'm not. I'm 22 years old, and I'm sure under Japanese law in the old world, I'd be considered an adult."

"Really?" Lindow raised an eyebrow, "That's interesting. Then I stand corrected."

"My little brother maybe a kid, but I wouldn't count him out either." Azumi confidently stated as she patted her brother's shoulder, "The two of us are a team. Thanks to the training I agave him, he can handle himself. We might be young, but we're the best in our group, and they can always count on us to get the job done."

"I see." Lindow nodded with a grin, "Never mind then."

Azumi then reiterated, "As I was saying, our group is heading to Fenrir, and we were hoping we could enlist your help to escort us there. I understand if it's something you may not want to do, but I'd be willing to compensate you after we arrive." Azumi put her hand on her chest, "I don't have anything to give you right now, but I'd be willing to personally work off the debt. So …"

"That's enough." Lindow held up his hand which stopped Azumi in her tracks. He pulled out another cigarette and let lit it as he told Azumi, "You don't have to keep going on and on. It doesn't look good after a while."

"…" Azumi light bit her lip.

"Ahhh …" Lindow breathed in his cigarette. Azumi could see the butt of it spark as her elder took it in. He then let out a breath, and she could see a cloud of smoke emerge from his mouth. He casually stated, "If you want us to escort you to Fenrir, we can do that."

"Really?" Azumi asked in an excited tone with wide eyes, "You'll really do it?"

"Why not?" Lindow shrugged as he nonchalantly remarked with the cigarette between his fingers, "It'd be pretty lame of me not to help you now. You have traveled a long way after all."

"You don't have to act like that Lindow." Sakuya turned to Azumi and Yu and assured him, "Of course we'll be happy to escort you, and you don't have to worry about payment either." She then nudged her leader, "Right, Lindow?"

"Yeah. Yeah." Lindow casually scratched the back of his head, "Of course not."

It was Yu's turn to asked, "Really?"

Sakuya then assured the siblings, "The moment we saw your flare, we decided that we'd be willing escort you back to Fenrir if you wanted it."

Azumi smiled as she excitedly replied, "All right! We did it! Thank you so much!"

Lindow remarked before breathing in his cigarette, "You probably shouldn't thank me yet."

"Sorry sir." Azumi nervously remarked, "It's just a … real honor to meet real life God Eaters. I feel so lucky that you'll act as our escort."

" _Lucky huh?"_ Soma thought to himself, _"We'll see."_

The way Soma was looking in their direction didn't go unnoticed by Azumi who glanced in his direction, "Hmm?"

"Don't mind him." Sakuya stepped in, "He's a grump."

"Seems pretty young to be one." Azumi curiously remarked.

"…" Soma remained silent.

"He is, but that's beside the point." Sakuya stated, "Helping people is what we do, so you don't have to worry about it."

Azumi stated as she bowed her head again, "Even so, we're very grateful."

Soma thought to himself before they moved out, _"Let's just see how much luck you really have."_

/

 **Author Notes** : How did everyone enjoy the God Eater fight? I did my best to try writing it as best as I could. The fight scene with the Orgetails was intentionally fast. To an ordinary person, they would be horrifying. There is one way for a normal human being to fight them. However, someone with the powers of a God Eater can fight them. If they are experienced like Lindow's team, taking them down won't be a problem. While they can be a bit of a pain if they attack you all at once, they do seem to be one of the easiest enemies to fight.

What did you think of how I portrayed the God Eaters? This is the first chapter to feature canon characters outside of Yu. Unlike Yu who is generally a silent protagonist outside of the manga adaptation, these guys have tangible personalities. Soma was the easiest since he doesn't talk much and doesn't go through significant character development until the events of the first game. I really wanted to capture Lindow's laid back but occasionally serious personality. I had to touch up his body language and dialogue a few times in my attempt to utilize it.

The way they spoke on the radio was done intentionally. He spoke to Sayuka and Soma without using 'Over' before they saw the flares in the sky. I figured I'd make him take things a little more seriously when he knows there are civilians in the area.

I wrote Azumi and Yu to go through a great mix of emotions intentionally. Seeing the Aragami go down was cathartic for them. It was scary and exciting. They also wanted to meet the God Eaters, but also felt a little intimidated by how powerful they are. If they wanted to, they couldn't do a thing to stop them. After all, it isn't like there is any actual proof that the God Eaters would be friendly and let them in Fenrir. Even Azumi's brief attempts at being playful with her brother were overshadowed by the aura of the God Eaters. It was risk they took, and they were fortunate enough that Lindow was the one that found them.

As with previous chapters, I considered having more content in this chapter, but I decided to save it for the subsequent chapter. I hope I will be able to provide updates for this story in the near future.

Please be sure to leave a review. Writing this story takes time, especially when trying to bring it out of 'Development Hell.' Feedback will be greatly appreciated, and I hope to hear from you soon. See you next time.


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